Meant To Be
by Pipergirl17
Summary: Darcy is selected to attend a business conference in southern France. While there she finds romance, friendship, and an appreciation for the Mediterranean sun. A light-hearted tale that is intended to renew readers' faith in the power of love at first sight.
1. Chapter 1

Well, here it is. My first multi-chapter fic in just under ten years-we can thank Loki and Darcy for shaking my muse back into action!

The background for this story is based on personal experience. This past summer I had the joy of travelling to the same places I'm sending Darcy; if I could, I'd go back to southern France in a heartbeat. The whole romance bit, though… that's where my imagination kicked in :)

This is an AU story-that means no gods or magic. Also, later chapters will be rated mature, so younger viewers be warned. As always, reviews are nourishment for an author's soul-please take a few moments to leave some feedback!

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1.

Mondays sucked. Royally, unarguably the worst day of the week.

At least, this was what was going through Darcy Lewis's mind as she raced through the office towards her desk at 8:45am-15 minutes later than her start time. Even if her boss wasn't a stickler for a minute here or there, Darcy had made it a habit to be ten minutes early every day. But on this particular morning, the entire world had conspired against her, from her alarm somehow resetting its daylight savings time, to the leaking dishwasher, to the construction blocking her bus's route (at least the bus had been on time). She'd felt like a sprinter, jumping hurdle over hurdle on her way to a finish line called Globalcomm Industries.

As she snapped her laptop into its docking station and began logging onto her system, her boss stuck her head out of her office.

"Darcy! You're finally here. When you're settled in I need to see you in my office pronto."

"Ok, Janet!" _Shit_, the young woman thought, the bottom of her stomach falling to her heels. _That dickhead Bryan is always late and she's never called him on it_.

Resigned to the verbal reprimand awaiting her, Darcy finished logging in and straightened her clothes before heading over to her manager's office.

Janet was sitting at her desk, focused on an email she was typing. "Hi-give me a quick sec and I'll be with you."

"Sure, no prob." Darcy stood in the doorway awkwardly. A few of her teammates who were walking by waved, and she felt like there was a large sign on her forehead letting everyone know she was about to be raked over the coals for her tardiness. She was looking down at her cardigan, making sure there wasn't a scarlet T on it, when her boss addressed her.

"Oh goodness, you're not still standing there, are you?" She waved the young woman into her office. "Please sit down. Oh, and close the door first."

Darcy did as she was instructed and sat down in one of the two chairs opposite her boss. Before Janet could even open her mouth to speak, she began to apologise. "Look, I'm really sorry I was late. Everything went wrong this morning and I know it's not an excuse, but I swear it won't happen again."

"Darcy, you're in early every morning," the other woman replied offhandedly. "I don't care if you're late a morning here or there. It happens to all of us."

"Oh." Darcy sat there, staring at the other woman, completely at a loss for words (which did not happen often). "Umm... then why did you want to see me?"

"I received an email late on Friday announcing a global conference in July. Head office has decided to roll out those new functionalities we've been hearing about, and each region has been asked to send a representative." She smiled and waited for Darcy's reaction, which came out as a series of stuttered utterances. "Why you? Your work on the Powell project showed initiative, leadership, tenacity and-most of all-organisational agility. Ted's still talking about how you managed to gain incremental funding for the project through your discussions with Innovation."

This was the level of recognition she'd been working for. Heck, it was what anyone anywhere worked for. And she'd worked so much overtime on that project, from late nights to weekends, to ensure a smooth transition from Powell's old system to the one Globalcomm had sold them on. As usual, Sales had made some pretty wild promises and the development team-of which she was a part-was left with the task of either trying to make the impossible happen, or negotiating alternative solutions when it was impossible.

She stood up, pacing the length of her boss's desk, and finally managed to make her mouth work. "Wow. I mean, holy shit, you're not kidding, are you?"

Janet laughed. "No. I'm not kidding. You want to know the kicker? The conference is in Southern France."

Darcy fell back in her chair-or maybe it was the other chair, or perhaps the floor, as she wasn't in a frame of mind to notice such trivialities-and took a deep shaky breath. "Please tell me you're not joking."

"Nope. We're talking _the_ French Riviera; hot sun, sandy beaches, the Mediterranean... And you'll be there for a week. On Globalcomm's budget." At this she frowned slightly. "I just need to do a bit of creative accounting with my departmental budget, but I'm getting you there one way or another, Darcy. More than anyone here at our New York office, you've earned this opportunity."

"Thank you. Oh my God thank you so much." She stood up and was halfway to the door before a thought came to mind. "But what about Candace, and Bryan, and Vijay? I mean, they have more seniority than me. What if they're upset about this?" She really didn't think Vijay would be upset; he was her lunch buddy and, after all, he was the one who'd ensured that everyone knew how hard she'd been working on the project. Candace and Bryan, on the other hand? There were going to be a lot of uncomfortable silences in the near future…

"Then let them come to me. I am the head of this department because Ted trusts my ability to make decisions that are sound for the business, whether or not some people think they are fair." When she spoke again, her tone was softer. "I'll send you a copy of the email as well as contact information for our travel agency; I suggest you contact them to book your flight as soon as possible. And ask them to provide a cost for economy and business class-sometimes they land some great deals for business class."

"Business class. Gotcha," Darcy acknowledged incredulously. _Double holy shit_. She walked back to her desk, feeling the eyes of her teammates on her. Bryan's desk was still unmanned, and she felt a sense of pride in knowing that the work ethic she adhered to was being recognised not only by her boss, but by upper management too.

Finally seated at her desk, she opened PowerPoint to work on her summary of the Powell project. First, however, there were more important things to do. She grabbed her iPhone and texted her best friend Jane.

_OMG! You'll never guess where I'm going in July!_


	2. Chapter 2

2.

_Now boarding Air France/Delta Air Lines flight number 3629 to Charles de Gaulle airport. We ask for Sky Priority passengers to come forward first. Please have your boarding pass ready…_

Darcy grabbed her backpack and held her boarding pass and passport in the other hand. It was silly, but there was a certain sense of smugness in getting to line up with all the hoity-toity folks (or that's how she'd always seen them when she'd been stuck waiting with the economy crowd) in a civilized line that bore no resemblance whatsoever to a cattle drive.

She triple-checked her seat number as she made her way down the gangway. "Seat 2L," she muttered to herself, wondering if she was going to have trouble finding it. She was counting which number letter L was (how many seats were on a row in business class, anyway?!) when she arrived at the plane.

"Bonjour mademoiselle," a friendly-looking stewardess greeted her.

"Bonjour," Darcy replied, internally cringing at her accent. She'd brushed up on basic French and thought she was doing pretty well until now. _At least I'll provide the folks in France with some comic relief_, she told herself.

If having her mother tongue butchered bothered the stewardess, she didn't show it. Her smile never faltering, she instructed the young woman to turn left into the business class section of the plane.

Darcy walked through the curtain and proceeded to find her row. _5... 4... 3... 2... Window seat. Score!_ She dumped her backpack in the cubby under the seat in front of her and sat down, looking at all the gadgets she'd never seen in economy, like the remote control for her personal TV. The seat was so big that when she sat back her feet didn't touch the ground; she took out her iPhone and started taking pictures for Jane to see when she remembered that her friend-an astrophysicist-was a seasoned international flyer. _ Oh well, I'll just take them for myself; it's not like I'll be doing this again in a while, that's for sure._

While she was busy snapping photos, someone occupied the seat next to hers. She looked over and saw a very handsome man, not that much older than her, in an expensive suit. He nodded at her and she smiled back, trying her damnedest not to stare. Or drool, for that matter. He was tall and lean, and he wore his black hair longer than most men she'd ever seen wearing suits that cost about the same as a few months' worth of rent. This was definitely something for Facebook. She grabbed her phone again and posted _Sitting in business class waiting to take off for France. Icing on the cake is the hot guy in the seat next to me. Rowr!_

The pilot's voice came over the intercom with an update on their flight. All good news: flight leaving on time, good tail wind, sunny and hot at their destination. While he was talking, Darcy noticed a sticker beside the cubby where she'd stuffed her backpack warning against storing anything in it during take-off and landing. _Shit_. She really didn't want to have to disrupt the guy beside her every ten minutes to get her backpack out of the overhead storage, not that she'd be able to reach it anyway. She turned to him and asked "Excuse me, do you know if it's ok to leave my backpack in there?"

The man-whose eyes, she noticed, were the nicest shade of blue-pursed his lips and looked doubtful. He leaned in close to her and said "I wouldn't recommend it; I've seen them bump people back to economy for trying it."

"Crap!" Darcy undid her seatbelt and reached for her backpack with lightning speed, only stopping when the man placed his hand on her arm. He was smiling and trying very hard, with only moderate success, not to laugh. "I'm sorry," he said, chuckling, "but I was only teasing you. Most people stow their belongings down there and I've never seen any of them being asked to move them."

Her panic ebbed, only to be replaced with a hot flash at the sound of his voice. _Great, he's hot and he has a British accent. Double-whammy, Darcy. Just make sure he doesn't actually see your panties melt._

"You know, you could give someone a heart attack pulling a prank like that," she said, sitting back down.

"Ah, but I know first aid. I would have done my best to save you."

"Wow. Let me know if you ever need to practice." Darcy's hand flew up to her mouth when what she'd said struck her. Mortified, she wondered if there was room for her to crawl in the cubby behind her backpack. "Oh my God, I can't believe I said that out loud," she offered. "That was out of line; I am so sorry."

The man smiled and shook his head. "Perhaps what we need is to introduce ourselves first, and then move on to propositions." He held his hand out. "I'm Loki. And yes, it's a terrible name two avid historians foisted upon a poor defenceless newborn."

Darcy accepted the proffered hand. "I'm Darcy. And Loki's not that bad. They could have given you a Hollywood kid name, like Buddy Bear or Zuma."

"Indeed. You have a valid point, there."

"You don't have a brother called Thor, though, do you?" she asked, teasing. At the look on his face-a definite pained 'yes', if she'd ever seen one-she laughed out loud. "Oh, geez. That's hilarious!"

The pilot's announcement that they were getting ready to taxi for take-off temporarily interrupted their conversation. The reminder to turn off electronic devices prompted Darcy to root through her backpack for her iPad, proof enough to her that stowing it in the cubby had been the better idea.

"Do you fly often?" she asked Loki. For some reason, she didn't want the conversation to end. Aside from the fact that he was good looking and had that panty-melting voice, he made her laugh and that was always a bonus in her books.

"Unfortunately, yes. I'd say I'm on a plane on a weekly basis."

"You don't fly to France every week, do you?" The mere thought of taking two seven-hour flights every week exhausted her.

"Oh goodness no," he replied quickly. "That would be what I call a 'show stopper'-I'd have to find myself a new job. No, I mostly fly within the US, the majority of them short flights, so they're manageable. How about you? Do you travel much?"

"Not at all, actually," she replied sheepishly. "This trip is a sum of firsts for me: first business class, first conference and first visit to the French Riviera. I'm really looking forward to it."

As the plane rolled along the tarmac, gaining speed for take-off, Loki began patting his jacket pockets, grumbling to himself. "You wouldn't happen to have some chewing gum, would you? It's the only thing that helps me with the pressure changes on these flights."

"Sure, hold on." Darcy dug through a side pocket on her backpack and found a pack of gum, which she handed over to him. He took the pack and helped himself to a piece of gum, but as he handed it back to her he noticed a card stuck to the pack.

"Oops," she said, reaching for it. "Business card; I've no idea how that got in there."

"You work for Globalcomm?" He asked, looking the card over.

"Wait. You've actually heard of Globalcomm? I've never met anyone who knows us. Are you in systems too?"

"You could say that," he replied cautiously. He pulled a business card out of his breast pocket and handed it over to the young woman.

Darcy's jaw dropped when she looked at the card. It was a Globalcomm Industries card, just like hers. Except instead of saying Darcy Lewis, Systems Development Scientist, it had Loki Odinson, Innovations Regional Manager, Northeastern US printed on it.

"Wow. Small world." She turned the card over in her hand, wondering why she hadn't made the connection-after all, it's not like Lokis were a dime a dozen. "Guess you're one of the big guys, huh?"

"Some people might see it that way, but I don't encourage that old boys' club mentality. " He paused, trying to get his ears to pop by chewing in an exaggerated motion. When he seemed satisfied with his efforts, he continued. "Everyone has something to bring to the table, whether they're at an entry level position or whether they've been there for a long time. I'm assuming you're on your way to the conference in Grande Motte; if so, it means you're seen as one of our brightest employees and that in itself is a testament to your contribution to the company."

"Thank you, really. I hadn't thought about it like that." She looked out the window at the ground, watching New York recede until the buildings became hidden by the thick cloud cover. Her thoughts switched back to Loki, and how he seemed too perfect; there had to be a catch, like he picked his nose, or his feet smelled really bad, because it just wasn't possible for her to be sitting beside a smart, well-off, good-looking, nice guy who seemed to enjoy her company.

She remained lost in thought, wondering whether Loki's travel itinerary matched hers; if so, she might actually have someone to keep her company during the four hour stopover at the airport in Paris. Her musings were eventually interrupted by a flight attendant, who asked her a question in French. Despite having spent a few hours learning the language using online tutorials (hey, why pay for an app when you have YouTube?), Darcy didn't understand a word of what the woman asked. "Sorry, what was that?" she replied sheepishly.

"Would you like something to drink?"

"Oh!" Darcy looked at the trolley, laden with nearly every kind of drink you would want, and nearly smacked herself in the forehead. She was going to have to smarten up if she wanted to survive this trip. "Diet Coke, please."

The attendant handed her a glass-an actual *glass* glass-of Diet Coke and a menu, and turned to address Loki. "Et pour Monsieur?"

Not surprisingly, he replied in what seemed to Darcy flawless French. He was handed a glass of red wine and a menu as well.

"So tell me-where did you learn to speak French so well if you're not over there every other week?" It was in Darcy's very nature to need to know everything, to ask questions and get answers. At work this character trait was seen as a strength, as the element that fuelled her drive to succeed; in her personal life, however, she'd all too often been seen as nosy, and had conscientiously worked at curbing her curiosity. "That is, if you don't mind my asking. Feel free to tell me to mind my own business."

Loki smiled at her. "I don't mind you asking," he replied, taking a sip of his wine. "Although my French isn't quite what it used to be." He took a deep breath and leaned back into his seat, turning to face her. "When I was sixteen, my father sent me to the French countryside to..." He paused, frowning. "Even to this day, I'm not really sure what he expected by sending me there. I was on my way to being the poster child for juvenile delinquency, and..."

"Whoa-hold on. _You_ were a troublemaker?!"

He laughed. "If only I'd been a troublemaker, Darcy. I was more than that, and then some. I'd been charged with arson, theft, assault-it's cliché, but I was on the road to self-destruction. My family's lawyer had been a close friend of my father's since University; both his professional and personal advice was to send me away, to provide me with a change of scenery and a second chance." He took another sip of wine, smiling faintly to himself. "He owned a small farm in southern Alsace and agreed to take me in for the summer, providing I stayed out of trouble."

Darcy couldn't believe it. She'd hung out with kids who'd ended up in juvie, and gauging by what she'd seen on Facebook none of them had managed to become a regional manager at a multinational enterprise. "I'm going to go out on a limb and guess that you managed to keep your nose clean?"

"Well, the alternative was to be sent to a juvenile detention centre, so the incentive was there for me to behave. In any case, I was kept too busy to wander back to criminal thoughts. After a twelve hour day doing everything from tossing hay bales to scrubbing milk pans, sleep comes easy."

They were interrupted by the flight attendants who were serving the first course. Darcy watched, amused, as a tablecloth was placed on her table, followed by a tray of appetizers, assorted cheeses and desserts. "Merci," she said, eager to dig in. She waited until Loki had his own tray before continuing the conversation.

"So all it took for you to right your criminal ways was some manual labour?" She asked, unsure if she'd managed to hide the doubt from her voice. She cut a piece of what looked like a salmon and cream cheese roll and placed it in her mouth, almost groaning in delight at its taste. _If this is what the airplane food tastes like, I'm gonna gain fifteen pounds while I'm there,_ she mused.

"No, that only kept me too busy to make trouble. The one who was responsible for turning me in a better direction was Louis, the caretaker. He was a bodger, you see,.."

"A bodger?"

Loki pursed his lips while he thought of a different word. "A tinkerer-that's sort of what a bodger is. Louis would take the motors out of old appliances and make these crazy machines that served no real purpose other than to amuse him. I gravitated towards him almost immediately, spending all of my free time at first watching him work, then helping him." He seemed to remember that he had a plate of food in front of him, and took a few moments to taste the various appetizers that he'd been served.

Darcy seized the pause in their conversation to enjoy some Brie with her piece of baguette, followed by a taste of pickled radish slaw. She looked at her watch; they'd only been in the air for an hour, which meant she had another 6 and a half hours to kill on the plane, plus 4 hours at Charles de Gaulle airport in Paris, and then another hour or so before reaching Montpellier airport. _Ugh. Why can't they get with beaming people around, already?_

She turned her attention back to her new friend, who seemed to be lost in thought. "Penny for your thoughts," she said before taking another bite of her bread.

"I was still thinking about Louis and his contraptions." He chuckled, shaking his head slowly. "The first machine we worked on together was a mechanized trebuchet-a sort of catapult, if you will, with a counterweight at the bottom and a pouch on a string for the missile." He padded his pockets-he seemed to do that a lot, reminding Darcy of a College professor she once had-and pulled out a notepad and a pen. He pushed his tray aside, using his table as a surface on which to draw.

While he was sketching his 'sort of catapult', the attendant passed by, picking up any dishes they were done with. Darcy passed hers along, keeping one eye on Loki's slender fingers, and the confident strokes with which he sketched. He drew exactly what he'd described, but on paper it made much more sense to the young woman. "So this is where you would put your projectiles, and the counterweight would provide the momentum for the swinging motion..." The corner of his mouth pulled up into a devilish smirk and his blue eyes twinkled with mischief. "Now, imagine affixing a motor in lieu of the counterweight..."

"And your projectile would catch major air." Darcy laughed with him. "That must've been wicked!"

"Louis and I certainly thought so. The neighbour whose garden shed we hit, however, didn't share our enthusiasm. Luckily he accepted our offer to fix it and did not contact the local authorities. That would have been counterproductive to the purpose of my stay there."

"It does explain how you ended up in Innovations, though." Darcy sat up straight, allowing the attendant to place the tray with her main course on her table. She was still full from the appetizers and wasn't really sure how she'd manage to plough through a serving of guinea hen with mushroom sauce. "They don't happen to have a gym on board, do they? Cause I don't know how they expect us to eat so much while we're just sitting around."

"I'm afraid not," Loki said around a mouthful of baguette. "The trick is to eat until you feel sleepy, but not sick. It's a hard medium to find, actually."

"Oh." Neither option seemed ideal to the young woman, so she decided to simply follow her common sense and stop eating when she started to feel full.

Just as she was pushing her tray to the side, she noticed her personal TV screen had gone blank. "That's odd; I don't remember turning it off," she muttered, reaching for her remote. She pressed the power button a few times before turning to her neighbour. "Is your TV working? Mine seems to have gone to sleep."

Like Darcy's, Loki's TV was non-responsive. "Damn," he said, equally frustrated. He called an attendant over for assistance. Although they spoke much too fast for her to catch the entire conversation, the young woman could tell from their body language that the news wasn't good.

"Their on-board entertainment system isn't working," he explained after the attendant had walked away. "They've tried everything they can but it's non-responsive."

Ever the optimist, Darcy saw this as an opportunity to get to know her new friend better. "If you want, we can play a game of A or B," she suggested.

"A or B? I've never heard of it. How is it played?"

"Well, it's kind of an ice-breaker; its purpose is to get to know someone better. One person asks an A or B question, like..." She paused, thinking of a question she could use as an example. "Red or white? Meaning wine, of course."

"So I'm to tell you which one I prefer? Red or white wine?"

"Yeah. The fun part is moving away from the basic questions to funny or racy ones."

The corner of his mouth quirked up. "Red, then. A bold red like a Cabernet Sauvignon. Is it one sided, or do we alternate?"

This was going to be too much fun. "We alternate. It's your turn, now."

Loki leaned back while his table was being cleared, using the opportunity to think of a question. "Dog or cat?"

"Neither," Darcy replied apologetically. "I'm allergic to both."

"There are hypoallergenic breeds of dogs, you know."

"Yeah, but I think my mom always used my allergies as an excuse to not have pets in the house. What about you? Did you guys have pets growing up?"

"We had," he said, shaking his head and chuckling, "a veritable menagerie. Cats, dogs, birds. My brother had a lizard and I had a large fish tank built into one of my bedroom walls."

"Cool. I would have been totally jealous! Umm... Spring or Fall?"

"Fall. The colours are spectacular, and there's nothing quite like the crunch of the leaves under your shoes or the smell of the damp leaves after a rainfall. It's one of my favourite things about living in New York." He smiled and Darcy's stomach did a flip. She'd never fallen for someone as hard and as quickly as she was falling for Loki, and this worried her. She _hated_ Fall, how it marked the end of summer, when the days got shorter and colder, and it always seemed to rain; it made her downright miserable. But hearing him talk about it made her want to experience it along with him, to share in his happiness.

"That's lovely," she remarked, politely refraining from sharing her own opinion on the season.

They continued their game of getting to know one another, volleying questions back and forth in hushed tones usually reserved for libraries, with topics ranging from the mundane ('steak or chicken'), to the more cerebral ('Shakespeare or Poe'), to the silly ('bacon or sausage') until the flight crew turned the lights down for the night.

Darcy took out her blanket and covered herself with it. "I don't think I'm going to be able to sleep," she confided. "I'm just so excited; I'm like a big bundle of nerves."

Loki's voice came out from under his blanket, receding as his seat reclined to the point of becoming a bed. "Just close your eyes and relax. You're likely more tired than you think."

Very doubtful, she shifted her own seat to the horizontal position and curled up on her side facing her new friend. Before she knew it, her breathing had evened and Darcy Lewis was sound asleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Just one more chapter before Loki and Darcy reach their destination-how exciting! In the meanwhile, they get busy flirting and poor Loki gets a call from his mom; what in the world could she be nagging him about?!

And, as always, reviews warm the heart. Please take a moment to let me know what you're thinking, even if it's just a few words!

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3.

Darcy was in heaven. The sand beneath her was soft and warm, and the sun's rays caressed her skin like an old lover. _This_ was why she'd come to Southern France. After the year of insanity she'd suffered co-leading the Powell project, some Mediterranean R&R was exactly what she needed.

Suddenly, a shadow loomed over her, blocking her sunshine. She cracked one eye open, smiling when she saw that it was Loki who was hovering above her. He let himself down gently, his body covering hers, his lips skimming along her jawline to her neck. She moaned and pressed up against him, trying to make out the words he was whispering in her ear.

"Darcy, it's time to wake up."

_Wha?_ Darcy opened her eyes and winced at the bright sunlight that was pouring in through her window. Grasping at the straws of consciousness, she considered the good, the bad and the ugly in what had just happened: the good was that she seemed to have actually slept; the bad was that her dream, which had so much potential, had been interrupted; and the ugly was still up in the air, as she didn't know whether or not she'd actually been moaning out loud.

"I... I wasn't talking in my sleep, was I?" she asked, tentatively.

"No, no talking at all," was his reply. He leaned in, though, and whispered in her ear. "However, I'd really be interested in knowing why you were moaning my name."

"Oh God..." Darcy hid her face in her hands, mortified. Finding the courage to look up, she gave him a rueful smile. "I can't tell you what we were up to because we were so rudely interrupted."

"Well," he purred, "we'll have to make sure that doesn't happen next time."

Her brain was still trying to catch up to her ears when the flight attendant came by with breakfast trays. "Ugh. I'm still full from dinner," she complained, turning the offer down.

Checking her watch, she saw that she'd actually slept for a solid three hours, leaving her with only an hour before reaching Paris. She'd have more than enough time to grab something to eat at the airport. It was at that point that she realised she hadn't actually made sure that Loki was following the same schedule as her once they reached Paris.

"What time is your connecting flight?" she asked, wondering how on earth he was managing to down both a croissant _and_ a baguette with butter and jam so soon after having eaten dinner.

Loki patted his coat pockets as he finished his mouthful. "Not quite sure," he said. When he found his ticket, he grimaced. "Just shy of twelve thirty. That makes for a long stopover, I'm afraid."

"Hey, at least we'll be bored together. It looks like we're on the same flight to Montpellier." The prospect of spending more time with Loki far outweighed the dread of wasting hours of her life wandering around an airport, and Darcy was secretly pleased how things were turning out. "What do people do for four hours in an airport, anyway?"

"Aside from duty-free shopping and waiting, there isn't much to do. I usually head straight to the lounge and take advantage of the free wi-fi to get some work done. However, I've never been blessed with such lovely company before on a business trip, so I might easily be convinced to stray from my routine." He took a sip of his tea-Earl Grey, Darcy had noticed because it was _her_ favourite, too-and turned to look at her. "I really enjoyed our game earlier; perhaps we can pick it back up when we're in Paris?"

Darcy opened her mouth to reply-she wanted Loki to know that she was enjoying his company, too-but she was preempted by a voice on the intercom.

_Mesdames et messieurs, ici votre commandant. Nous allons commencer notre descente vers Paris..._

"Looks like we're getting close." Loki craned his neck, trying to see out the window. Frowning, he sat back in his seat. "People always talk about London being overcast, but it has nothing over Paris. I don't think I've ever landed there on a sunny day."

Darcy peered out the window, seeing that the blue skies had indeed been replaced with dense clouds. It was almost as if they were flying through cotton. "I'm glad the pilots have radar and GPS or whatever electronic tools to guide them, otherwise I'd be worried right now," she said in a weak voice.

"Don't worry. Before you know it, you'll be complaining about how long it takes for them to taxi us to our gate."

* * *

Just as Loki had predicted, the excitement of finally landing on terra firma slowly evaporated as the plane made yet another turn on the tarmac, taxiing its passengers towards their destination.

"Geez. You think they can drop us off at our hotel while they're at it?" After almost eight hours in the same seat, Darcy's patience had dissipated. She needed a change of scenery _stat_.

Her companion ignored her rant-he _had_ commented on her first two outbursts, after all-and continued to gather his belongings and tidy up his area. Darcy decided to follow suit, if only to shift her focus for a few minutes. She shoved everything back into her backpack and was folding her blanket when they finally pulled up to a gate.

The usual rigmarole of passing through customs was surprisingly painless, and Loki assured her it was because of the early hour.

"Had we been passing through here later in the morning or, God forbid, in the afternoon, our 15 minute breeze through customs would have been a one or two hour exercise in patience."

"And would have required massage therapy," Darcy added, shifting her backpack; it wasn't usually so heavy, but a laptop and its accessories added enough weight to render it uncomfortable after a while.

"That, I completely understand," Loki said, raising his briefcase-style laptop bag to show what he meant. "I always need to go for a long massage after such a trip."

"Why don't you get a backpack, too? It's much easier on your body than one of those." She tilted her head at the bag he was holding over his left shoulder.

"I would look absolutely ridiculous with a backpack," he replied, slightly horrified.

"Yeah, but at least you won't end up looking like you've got scoliosis."

They walked a short distance past the shops and snack bars before Loki spoke up. "I gather you're right," he conceded. "Although I still say I'd look ridiculous."

"Meh, you'd be a trendsetter. Before you'd know it, all the cool kids on Wall Street would be matching backpacks to their Pradas."

Her companion gave her an incredulous look before laughing out loud. "Darcy, please don't ever change."

She grinned at him, pleased that she'd made him laugh; only when they reached the elevator that would bring them to up to the lounge did the butterflies in her stomach begin to settle.

* * *

Darcy took account of how much time had lapsed since they'd arrived at the Air France lounge.

Finding a seat where they could both sit took ten minutes. Eating breakfast had killed a half hour, and only because she'd chewed each mouthful 25 times before swallowing. Checking Gmail, Facebook, Twitter and Vine had eaten up a whopping fifteen minutes since everyone back home was asleep and no one had had anything interesting to share, anyway. The five minutes spent finding the bathroom had nicely rounded off an hour.

That left them with more than two and a half hours before they boarded the plane to Montpellier.

She sighed and shifted in her seat, watching the rain fall on the planes and myriad other vehicles on the tarmac. At least they'd snagged window seats.

Her eyes shifted to the seat across from her, where Loki had been sitting, working away on his emails.

"Should I have brought a colouring book and some crayons?" he said, smiling gently to show no malice was intended.

"That might work if it was a Hello Kitty colouring book," she teased back, glad he was turning his attention back to her. "You'd have a tough time appeasing me with much else,"

He snapped his laptop shut and slid it back into its case, then settled more comfortably into his seat. His right ankle was resting on his left knee, and his fingers were drumming away on his right knee. It was the first time Darcy had been able to imagine Loki clad in casual clothes; slouching as he was, he could easily have been dressed in well-worn jeans and a t-shirt, holding a beer and watching a hockey game.

"What if we resume our game? A and B, I think you called it?"

"Ok, but we have to kick it up a notch. We got pretty lame back there with sausage vs bacon..."

"Agreed." He nodded in her direction. "Would you like to go first?"

"Sure." Darcy chewed on her bottom lip, trying to think of something that was more revealing without being too racy. No matter how much she wanted to know the answer to 'top or bottom', it really wasn't time for that. Yet.

And then it struck her: the perfect question. "Star Trek or Star Wars?"

He seemed surprised by the question, which pleased Darcy to no end. Contrary to every single person she'd ever asked, however, he didn't answer immediately. Most people had both feet firmly entrenched in one camp or the other and were very vocal about it. Loki simply sat there, his left hand cupping his chin, deep in thought. If he relaxed any more into his seat, Darcy figured she'd have to fish him out from behind the seat cushion with a vacuum cleaner.

"It depends," he finally announced. "If you mean the old Star Wars versus the old Star Trek, Star Wars wins hands down. I've never had any patience for William Shatner. However, if you mean the new Star Wars versus the new Star Trek, my preference is for the latter. I can tolerate Hayden Christensen even less than Shatner. And Chris Pine was brilliant as Kirk."

The young woman was floored. "Wow. No one has ever given that question that much thought before." She broke out into a grin. "Christensen was annoying, wasn't he? Not that I blame him-I guess I should say that Anakin was annoying. Get over yourself, dude. Sheesh!"

"Yes, that pretty much sums up my thoughts on the first three episodes as well." He straightened up a bit, stretching and yawning. "My turn. Bath or shower?"

The question surprised Darcy, but she decided to roll with it. She borrowed his earlier reply, "it depends" and, giving him her most kittenish smile, added "if I'm alone or if I have company."

His gaze darkened, blue eyes smouldering. "That isn't playing nice," he chastised.

"You _are_ the one who threw that question out there, you know."

"I suppose I did, but you should never tease a starving man with food."

_Starving man?!_ Darcy hadn't really considered Loki's relationship status. Now that she really thought about it, though, she hoped he wasn't the kind of guy who found himself a wife-away-from-home when he travelled. And she decided to altogether ignore the fact he'd called her food-they could have_ that_ conversation some other time.

"So... How long have you been 'starving'?" she asked cautiously.

He thought about for a moment, his brows furrowing in what she was too quickly considering a cute habit. "Just under two years. Cassandra and I parted ways in late August, just before she left for Greece."

"She went to Greece? Ouch! That must have been one hell of a break up." When she really considered it, though, her own life would have been easier if Bryan had decided to move to the other side of the world, too-and maybe fall off it while he was at it.

"Oh, it was an amicable split," Loki explained, the corners of his lips pulled up in an easy smile. "She had been looking for opportunities to work on her dissertation and one presented itself; a fellow archaeologist working on a dig in Greece accepted to take her on and support her. We'd always known that what we had would never lead to marriage, so it wasn't a very difficult decision." He smile faded a little, looking more rueful than happy. "Eventually the heart followed where the brain had already gone."

"I'm sorry." Darcy didn't really know why she was sorry; was it because he'd lost someone he cared for? Because his and Cassandra's relationship hadn't been a 'forever' one? Or because he looked a bit sad and she wanted to lean forward and give him a hug?

"Don't be. It would have been worse if we'd both held our lives back because of something that wasn't meant to last. _That_ would have been a tragedy. Instead, I still have a good friend in Cassandra-and a really cheap place to stay when I go to Greece," he threw in. "And you still haven't answered my question: bath or shower?"

Now it was her turn to ponder. Baths were great on those cold winter nights when the wind hit the west side of her apartment and the draft was at its worst; she'd spend her entire evening anticipating sinking into a tub of steaming water, the scent of her rose-scented bubble bath calming her to a near-comatose state.

However, immersing herself in hot water wasn't nearly as appealing in the summer, where her non-air conditioned apartment bore the brunt of a setting sun. Then, only a cool shower did the trick.

"I can't choose," she admitted. "Hot bath in the winter, cool shower in the summer. They're really not interchangeable."

Darcy leaned back in her seat, fatigue getting the best of her. It was still raining outside, dark clouds making everything look like night was approaching. The workers were still scurrying about the tarmac like ants on a sidewalk, prepping gates or loading suitcases; she yawned, wondering whether they were all thinking of dry clothes and hot chocolate.

Her eyes closed-_just for a moment_, she thought-and she heard Loki shuffling in his chair. A few moments later she felt herself being covered with something warm that smelled faintly familiar. Cracking an eye open, she noticed he'd draped his suit jacket over her like a blanket; a warm, fuzzy, feeling flowed through her and she smiled at at him before everything went pleasantly dark.

* * *

Darcy slowly clawed her way back to consciousness, fighting the siren's song of deep sleep. If she kept cat napping throughout the day, her system would be more thrown off than it already was and she'd never manage to get to sleep at night. And based on the packed agenda she'd seen for the conference's first day, she really needed to catch a whole lot of Z's.

The sound of a hushed voice stilled her movement. She shifted in her seat, eyes still closed, straining to hear what was being said.

"Mum, we're not having this discussion. Not here, not now. _Please_." It was Loki, and he sounded exasperated. "Yes, I know it's been a long time since Cassandra; don't you think I know that?"

Her eyes opened of their own volition, heedless of her brain's desire to eavesdrop. Was his mother nagging him about girlfriends while he was at the airport, in between flights?! Her gaze met his and he rolled his eyes, leaning his head against the back of his chair and draping his arm dramatically across his eyes. Darcy couldn't help but giggle in response.

All of a sudden he sat straight up. "I don't care if most of your friends have grandchildren, Mum; most of _my_ friends don't even have children yet and..." He sighed, sinking back into his chair, defeated.

Darcy shook her head and smiled, thinking of all the times she'd been pinned down by her own mother, forced to suffer through the same conversation. It was cathartic, in a sense, to see that other people's mothers were just as pushy as Mrs. Miranda Lewis. The young woman glanced at her watch and did a double-take. "Shit!" she exclaimed, jumping up. She tapped Loki's knee to get his attention and pointed to her watch.

"Damn! Mum, I've got to go. Our plane leaves in fifteen minutes-they're likely paging us right now." He somehow managed to slip his jacket and laptop bag on with his iPhone still glued to his ear. "Love you to bits, Mum, but I've got to go, really. Give my best to Father and Thor."

He finally ended the phone call as they waited for their elevator, and he visibly relaxed. "Good thing one of us is on the ball," he said. "She gets me so distracted..."

"S'alright. Although I didn't know guys got the grandkids speech, too. I figured that was reserved for us girls." She stepped into the elevator, pressing the 'doors open' button while her companion squeezed in.

"Well, she's given up entirely on Thor, I think, so it's like I'm her only hope for grandchildren. She was more upset at my split with Cassandra than either of us were; it was ridiculous."

They left the elevator and walked towards their gate, where only a few stragglers and airline employees remained. Darcy presented her boarding pass and passport, and proceeded towards the gate. Loki caught up to her, and she resumed their conversation. "Does your mom usually call you when you're travelling to nag you about grandkids? Cause that's way more extreme than my mom."

"Oh, no. In this case she called to see how my flight went and I let it slip that I'd made a new friend. A new _female_ friend," he emphasized, "and off she went." He waved dramatically, making a motion with his hand reminiscent of an orchestra conductor-just, without the baton.

She showed her boarding pass to the airline attendant and headed for the direction he'd indicated. "Well, some good will come of it."

"Oh yes?" he asked in disbelief, taking the seat behind hers. "And what is that?"

"If my mom calls, I'm sooo not mentioning you."


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: Thanks to all who have reviewed so far! Every time I see new feedback it feels like Christmas morning :)**

**There is a minimal amount of French in this chapter, but I've kept it simple so it will be easy to look up on Google translate (which I'd never recommend for anything other than a casual perusal).**

* * *

4.

Compared to the flight from New York to Paris, the flight from Paris to Montpellier was over in the blink of an eye. Darcy had chatted with the woman seated beside her, switching from French to English and then back again. It had been a great opportunity for both to practice a foreign language, and by the time they disembarked they'd exchanged emails with promises to stay in touch.

The passengers deplaned outside, and Darcy's first experience with the south of France was a warm breeze and the sun's hot rays. She turned her face up towards the sky, taking it all in.

"You truly have a gift with people," said a voice behind her. Loki had caught up with her, his jacket slung over his arm and sleeves rolled up to his elbows. With his Ray Ban sunglasses, he looked like a GQ model.

"How do you mean?" she asked, trying her best not to stare at him.

"I mean you struck up a conversation with the stranger sitting beside you and you both end up leaving the plane as if you'd been lifelong friends. I bet you'd have found a way to chat with the smelly rude man who was in the seat next to mine."

Despite the glasses covering his eyes she could tell he was honestly either perplexed or impressed-or both.

"I've always been able to start up a conversation with just about anyone. I mean, if it's a wild-eyed homeless guy on the subway I'm going to keep my distance like everyone else, but pretty much anyone's fair game. Society would be a nicer place to live in if people took down all those walls they've built up around themselves." _And it got me talking to you, didn't it?_ she thought to herself.

He surprised her by wrapping his arm around her shoulders and holding her against him, never breaking stride. "The world would indeed be a better place with more people like you, Darcy."

She leaned into his side, wrapping her arm around his slender waist. "Thanks," she said, not knowing what more she could say to such a lofty compliment.

They walked into the airport through a set of double doors and it struck Darcy just how small-make that _tiny_-Montpellier airport was. _No wonder there isn't a direct flight from JFK._

The baggage carousel was still motionless-obviously it took longer for the cargo to reach Arrivals than passengers-so Darcy took the opportunity to make a much-needed trip to the women's room. Although the bathrooms on the plane had been adequate, there's just something to be said about elbow room.

She followed the signs to the bathrooms-she was amused that even in France they seemed to call them WC's-and was surprised to see only one door. "Well," she muttered to herself, "I was told Europeans are a lot more laid-back than we are..." An overpowering smell of urine hit her before she'd even opened the door; she really hoped that maybe someone just hadn't made it on time. She pushed the door open and immediately pulled it shut. There was no way in hell she was going in there unless a Hazmat suit was involved.

She returned to Loki's side by the carousel and he looked at her, frowning. "You're back? That was quick."

"All the Euros in Europe couldn't get me to use that washroom. You can smell the pee before you even open the door. I've visited frat houses with cleaner bathrooms." She scrunched her face up at the memory of the bathroom's interior. The fact they were co-ed didn't bother her-it would have been just like College-but the dirty, soaked floors, littered with paper and god knows what, coupled with the stench of stale urine, was revolting.

"I'll just hold it in til we get to the hotel." She looked up at him, a bit desperate. "It's not too far away, is it?"

Loki leaned over and grabbed his suitcase from the carousel as it passed in front of him. "No," he grunted, hefting it over the ledge. "It's maybe a fifteen or twenty minute drive, depending on the traffic. What colour is your suitcase?"

"It's that bright orange one over there," she pointed.

When her luggage came by, he easily grabbed it and placed it beside her. "Come on, let's go find the car rental so we can get you to the hotel and its nice clean toilets."

* * *

At first, Darcy had been disappointed to find out they weren't as close to the ocean as she thought they would be; she'd imagined a drive on a road parallel to the sea, watching the waves roll in and the ships off in the distance. However, Loki's solemn promise that the hotel was seaside, as well as the convertible Mercedes SLK that was waiting for them at the car rental agency had raised her spirits.

"Globalcomm actually lets you rent a freakin' Mercedes?!" she'd exclaimed upon seeing the sleek black car waiting for them. "You've got to get me in touch with your contact in accounting." She walked over to the passenger side and peered in the window at the posh interior. _Bitchin'!_

At the rear of the car, Loki grimaced as he tried to fit their combined luggage into the trunk. He obviously hadn't counted on having a passenger when he'd rented the luxury vehicle. "Not in the least," he replied, standing back and staring at the trunk and the two large suitcases which needed to squeeze in it. "My boss would tear a strip out of me, for good reason. But they'd have me rent a Peugeot or a Renault. A man has a sense of pride, you know," he added haughtily.

Darcy walked over to where the young man stood and studied his quandary. Not twenty seconds later she grabbed her suitcase and slid it in on its side lengthwise, followed by his, and smiled triumphantly at him. "How's that sense of pride doin'?" she asked mischievously.

Before she could register what was happening, he reached for her, managing to grab her by the waist. "It's helping me figure out if there's room in the boot for one more." Darcy squealed, trying to pull free from his grasp, but only managed to fall to the ground into a giggling heap, still in his clutches. "Stop! I'm going to pee in my pants!"

Loki took pity on her and helped her up, still laughing. "Come on, then. Let's get you to the hotel." Ever the gentleman, he held the door open for her, then walked around to the driver's side.

She wanted desperately to ask him whether he was always this polite but thought it might insult him, as if she were questioning his motives. Her instincts told her that Loki wasn't putting on any acts; he simply was a nice guy with good manners, and that was fine by her because she'd always been able to trust her gut.

The further away they drove from Montpellier, the more beautiful the view became. Darcy's full attention was directed out her window at a vast track of marshlands that almost reminded her of the Everglades. Her eye caught something pink in the water and, a bit further, many more 'something pink's. "Are those pink flamingos?!"

Loki momentarily took his eyes off the road, casting a glance in the water's direction. "Yes, those are pink flamingos. This is one of the only areas of the Mediterranean where you'll see some, from what I've been told. You'll be in your element around here, because if you give the locals a chance they'll talk your ears off about what sets the Camargue region apart from any other." He paused, giving his full attention to navigating yet another traffic circle, then added "and keep your eyes open for the wild horses-you can usually see them gathered not far from here, drinking at the river at the side of the road."

"Wild horses?!" All of a sudden, Darcy was five again. She literally stuck her nose in the window, fingers splayed against the glass, her eyes scouring the countryside for horses. Finally, after a stretch of what looked like southern France's answer to trailer parks-was that woman _really_ doing her laundry by hand outside?!-they came across three horses standing on the bank of a small river. "Oh my God, they're gorgeous!" She exclaimed, awed by the simple beauty of the scene.

"Yes, they are beautiful. If I recall, they're really only partially wild-I believe the locals use them to herd their cattle." He sounded doubtful. "Although I'm not sure how that works, to be honest."

Darcy turned her attention from the countryside back to Loki. "You seem to know a lot about the region," she pointed out. "If I didn't know any better, I'd say you'd been channelling your inner Darcy by talking to the locals."

Loki simply raised his eyebrows in a 'who me?' gesture and pointed at the city limits a short distance down the road. "We're here."

* * *

He'd been right, of course. The Mercure-their hotel-was beside a marina which led directly onto the Mediterranean, and the view was breathtaking.

As they wheeled their luggage across the small parking lot towards the hotel's entrance, Darcy stopped in her tracks to gaze at the rows of yachts. Despite her fatigue, she was eager to go exploring, to walk up and down the docks and see everything close up; she'd never been one to hole up in her hotel room, and she certainly wasn't going to start now.

"Once we've rested we can go for a walk, if you want," Loki said, having stopped just ahead of her. "There are some restaurants and shops closer to the water, too."

It dawned on Darcy, although she kept the observation to herself, that they had easily adopted an attitude of being on vacation as a couple even though they'd known each other for less than a day. It seemed natural for them to meet up for dinner, to go walking together; it was, dare she think, romantic.

Was she ready for romance?

She looked at him, standing there patiently, tall and handsome, with the Mediterranean in the background, and felt a familiar tug.

Yeah, she was more than ready for a little romance.

"Dinner and a walk afterwards sounds perfect," she finally answered, moving along. "I can't wait to see my room."

"Each room has a balcony overlooking the sea, so I'm confident you'll be as impressed as I was my first stay here."

The doors slid open and they walked into a tastefully decorated lobby. Loki approached the front desk and was greeted by a young woman dressed in a white shirt and black skirt. "Bonjour," she greeted.

"Bonjour," the young man replied. "Nous sommes avec Globalcomm. Loki Odinson et Darcy Lewis."

Upon hearing her name Darcy approached the desk, standing beside Loki.

The clerk typed something in her computer and smiled. "Ah oui, vous voici." She looked between the two guests. "Une chambre ou deux?"

Even with her minimal French, Darcy understood the question. Before Loki had time to do more than look amused, she blurted "deux, s'il vous plait", not caring if her accent sounded a hundred times worse than Loki's. Flirting and the possibility of romance was one thing, but sharing a room was too much, too soon.

And way too complicated to explain to accounting, even if it did save the company money.

"Bien sûr, Madame." The clerk processed their reservations separately, and soon they were making their way to the elevators.

When the doors opened, Darcy gaped at how small it was. "It's so cute!" she exclaimed, laughing. Loki shook his head and walked in, dragging his suitcase behind him. He turned around and Darcy pulled out her iPhone, ready to capture the moment.

"Hold the door open-this is going to make a great photo!"

The young man looked exhausted. "I thought you had to use the toilet," he said, looking like he'd rather be anywhere than posing for a photo in an elevator.

"Come on," she teased, "give me your best 'I'm sexy and I know it' look."

He cocked an eyebrow and she took the picture knowing full well it was the best she'd get considering he was probably a hair's breadth from strangling her. Grabbing her bag she squeezed in with him and smiled. "Thanks for humouring me."

"You're welcome," he replied, closing his eyes and leaning his head back against the wall.

"You look as tired as I feel," Darcy remarked, not even trying to fight back a yawn. Light years passed between each floor the elevator climbed. When they'd reached the fifth floor, something that had been pushing at the back of her mind finally made its way through. "Oh yeah-what time do you want to meet up for dinner?"

It took long enough for him to answer that she was convinced he'd actually fallen asleep standing up. "Six-thirty should be fine. No restaurants serve dinner before seven around here-I'm afraid it's much different than in the States."

"That's ok. It'll give me more time to unpack and rest." The elevator lurched to a stop and the doors opened. "Looks like it's my floor. Do you want to meet in the lobby, then?" she asked, dragging her suitcase out of the small space.

"I'll pick you up at your room, if that's fine with you. 714, right?"

"Yup," she replied, watching the doors close. "See you then."

She walked down the hall to her room and unlocked the door, wanting nothing else than to fall back on the bed and sleep for the next few hours. However, that would fall in the 'cat nap' trap she wanted to avoid-she'd already slept too much today already-so she changed her focus to keeping busy.

When she opened her door and walked into her room, she understood what Loki had meant about being impressed. The far wall was one big window looking out onto the marina and the Mediterranean beyond that. She dropped her bags where she stood-she could unpack later-and walked out onto her balcony.

"Oh my God," she exclaimed wondrously. The balcony was awash in the sun's rays, still as hot as a midday sun despite the fact they were well into the afternoon. The view was astonishingly beautiful, with the marina at the forefront and the Mediterranean just beyond. She sat in one of the two chairs-she had a table, too-and reclined, setting her feet up on the railing. "A girl could get used to this."

* * *

Six-thirty was quickly approaching and Darcy stood in her bra and underwear, fresh from the shower, trying to decide whether she wanted to be casual in a t-shirt and shorts or whether she wanted to kick it up a notch and wear the green dress she'd brought.

The t-shirt and shorts would be more comfortable and less presumptuous, and she really didn't want to scare Loki off by acting like one of those girls who brings up the topic of marriage on a first date. She picked the dress up off the bed and hung it back up in her closet-_I'll wear it Tuesday, when we have our group dinner_. Grabbing her casual clothes, she skipped back to the bathroom to get ready for her maybe-kinda-date. Her watch showed the time as being six twenty-nine, which left her just enough time to get dressed and slap on a bit of makeup. After all, it wasn't like he'd be at her door at six-thirty sharp.

However, at damn near the stroke of six-thirty sharp, there was a knock on her door. "Shit!" she muttered, pulling her clothes on; it looked like she was going to go have to hurry up after all.

She opened the door and did a double-take, staring at Loki. He stood there in a pair of beige cargo shorts, a white linen shirt and sports sandals, with a light coat slung over his shoulder. He frowned, looking down at himself. "Is something the matter?" he asked, perplexed.

"No! It's just that you're so... casual." She stepped back, waving him in. "I sort of assumed you'd still be in your suit, what with you wearing one on a Saturday and everything..." Now she was babbling-she was certain he'd rethink the whole dinner idea.

He squeezed past her in the narrow entrance, brushing against her. "Goodness, no. I was wearing it because it's easier than figuring out how to pack it without needing to iron it-it's a trick of my father's, actually. Bloody brilliant, if you ask me..."

Darcy laughed. "And here I was, thinking you were a bit stuffy. Give me two minutes and I'll be ready to go," she added, heading into the bathroom.

"Sorry to disappoint," he teased, sitting down on the one corner of her bed which wasn't covered in clothes. "I could go put it back on if you prefer."

"Don't you dare!" she called out through the door. The last thing she needed was to have him dressed to the nines with her wearing an Adventure Time t-shirt..

A touch of mascara, a quick application of lip gloss, and one final check in the mirror was all she needed. Darcy blew her reflection a kiss and winked at herself before rejoining Loki. When she walked back into the main room, she caught him going through the underwear she'd unpacked and stacked on the bed.

"Find anything you like?"

Instead of doing what most guys would have done-that is, try to lie or sweet-talk their way out of a tight spot-Loki lifted a pair of red and white striped panties with "Sweet as Candy" written in cursive at the front so Darcy could clearly see them. "I was wondering, is this intended to describe your disposition, or is it a comment on what lies behind the underwear?" he asked, eyebrows raised and the corner of his mouth quirked. It was truly a deliciously naughty smile which the young woman found quite disarming.

But two could play that game.

"Now, what kind of friend would I be," she replied in the same playful tone he'd used, "if I went and ruined the surprise for you?"

Before things went any further, though, she steered the conversation into a different direction. As much fun as it was flirting with Loki, she really was hungry. "Now, how about that dinner? I'm so hungry my stomach's going to eat one of my kidneys soon."

"Well, we can't have that, now can we?" Loki folded the undergarment and placed it back on the pile with the others, and then stood up. "There are a few restaurants near the beach that are very good, and they're less than a ten minute walk from here. I would suggest you bring a sweater, though, because it can get quite chilly by the water once the sun sets."

Darcy rooted through the pile of clothing and pulled out a well worn cable-knit sweater which she'd brought specifically for the cooler evenings-she'd have to remember to thank Vijay for the advice when she got back home. Not in a million years would she have thought that it would get cold enough by the Mediterranean in the summer for her to need extra layers, but it seemed he'd been right.

She turned to Loki, who was waiting for her, his hand on the doorknob. "Let's get this show on the road, then."

* * *

**A/N: Many of Darcy's experiences and impressions in this chapter are pulled from my personal experiences during my trip to Grande Motte, from the nightmarish WC at Montpellier airport to the breathtaking view from the rooms at the Mercure. It's a blast to be able to relive the experience (embellished with a whirlwind romance, of course!)**

**As always, please take 15 seconds to leave me a few feedback bread crumbs!**


	5. Chapter 5

**A/N: Thanks ever so much to those who have reviewed! Your kind words mean so much.**

**To those who haven't, please take a few moments to share your thoughts-they help the ol' creative process more than you'd think :)**

* * *

5.

Darcy was discovering that Loki was a really fun person to hang around with.

They'd found a restaurant they both agreed on and were sitting at the patio enjoying the sun's final rays, which were slowly disappearing beneath the horizon. The young man was regaling her with stories of growing up in an unconventional household and had her in stitches.

"Oh my god-please tell me you're joking." Darcy stole another spoonful of the dessert plate she and Loki were sharing-an assortment of petits fours-and closed her eyes in rapture at the mix of raspberry and dark chocolate. The French sure did know how to whip up dessert.

"I'm afraid not. I believe it was the one and only time Mother ever vetoed one of our pets; Thor was beside himself."

"But it was a _tarantula_!"

"And she was harmless."

"She?! It was a she?"

"Yes. He'd named her Daisy; she'd come out of hiding when she heard his voice and would let him pet her..."

"Okay. That's enough-stop it right there before the skin at the back of my neck tries to crawl away." Darcy shuddered, wiping away at imaginary spider webs around her. Loki simply laughed and reached for the next-to-last dessert, moaning in delight at the custardy treat.

"These petits fours are absolutely decadent," he commented, licking the crumbs off his fingers.

Forcing herself not to think of what else his tongue could possibly do, Darcy pushed the plate to his side of the table. "Please eat the last one. If you don't, I will and then I'm going to barf."

Loki didn't argue; he simply thanked her and plucked the miniature mille feuilles off the plate and popped it into his mouth. He finished chewing, wiped at the corners of his mouth, and looked around the patio. "I take it I should initiate a game of 'chase the French server for my bill', then?"

"Please do. If I don't start moving soon I'm going to fall asleep."

Loki signalled to get their server's attention and the young woman nodded but headed in the opposite direction.

"They're really not in a rush to get rid of us, are they?" Darcy remarked.

"No, and I'm always left wondering if they actually want to get paid, as well." He pulled out his wallet and slipped out a credit card, staring at where the server had disappeared into the restaurant. "I'm afraid you Americans have ruined my capacity for patience when eating out. I always find myself looking at my watch when I'm back on this side of the Atlantic. It irritates my family to no end."

With the sun's last rays disappearing, the air was already cooling off and Darcy felt a chill. "You haven't told me what your brother does, yet," she commented as she reached for her cardigan and slipped it on, feeling an immediate sense of warmth and comfort.

"You haven't asked, yet," Loki replied, his eyes twinkling with mischief.

"Well I'm asking now," Darcy said, rolling her eyes.

The server chose that moment to arrive. "Vous voulez un café?"

"Non merci," Loki answered. "L'addition, s'il vous plaît."

"Bien sûr, Monsieur.". The young woman nodded and took his credit card before clearing off their table.

"Thor is a storm chaser, a profession that is most likely responsible for reducing my mother's life span by a few years."

Darcy stared at him slack-jawed. "So... a man named after the god of thunder _chases storms?!_"

"Yes. It's quite fitting, isn't it?"

"'Quite fitting' doesn't really start to cover it, Loki. That's crazy! That's just like..." She paused, and a little light bulb went off in her brain. "Hold on... Does he have a girlfriend?"

Loki looked at her oddly, frowning. "Not that I'm aware of..."

"Oh my god, that's too perfect!" She looked at him, grinning like a madwoman and rubbing her hands together. "My best friend Jane is an astrophysicist and she's always tracking crazy weather down, trying to find some Eisen-something bridge. I bet we could set them up-they'd be perfect for each other."

The server brought Loki his receipt and wished them both a good evening before tending to a nearby table. He stood up and put his coat on, and held the crook of his arm out for Darcy. "Mother would certainly be happy if he found someone to settle down with-figuratively, of course. Perhaps she'd harass him about grandchildren for a change."

Darcy slipped her arm through his and they set off towards the beach. The wind had picked up and the waves were rolling in, their loud _whoosh_ competing with the seagulls' cries. They walked in comfortable silence along the beach, watching as young couples gathered their children from a busy day of playing in the sand.

Off in the distance ships began to head back towards the marina for the night. Darcy watched one yacht which was carefully pulling in and sighed. "I'd love to be able to spend a night on one of these boats-I bet the waves just rock you to sleep."

"I've never felt comfortable on the water after dark, to be honest," Loki admitted. "There's just something about the water being black that I find frightening. Not to mention all the creaking and settling of the boat-it really gets one's imagination in overdrive."

Darcy looked out at the sea, which was growing dark, and shuddered. "Well, there goes that fantasy..."

When they arrived at a set of stairs flanked by a low wall, she asked "Do you mind if we stop here for a bit? It's just so calming, watching the waves."

"Of course not," replied Loki. He leaned back against the wall while Darcy jumped up to sit on its edge. "It really is beautiful. Cassandra always said that the tide is nature's way of grounding people-no matter how important our problems seem to be, the tide will always come in and the world will always keep on turning."

The young woman watched the white caps roll in to the beach, chasing each other in a never ending game of cat and mouse. "Cassandra's a wise woman."

"Yes, she is."

Darcy observed a group of teenagers play in the surf, chasing the waves as they receded and screaming as they washed back up onto shore. They egged each other on, pushing one another and laughing. She shivered and drew her cardigan around herself. "I don't know how they can do that when it's so cold out here."

Loki pulled away from the wall and turned to face her. "Why didn't you tell me you were cold? We could go back to the hotel if you're uncomfortable."

"But it's so pretty out here. I flew all the way to France to see things I can't see back home; I'm not going to go hide in my hotel room every time I'm a little too cold or hot."

"How about if someone helps keep you warm?" Loki took a step forward, closer than what would be considered decent in polite company, yet still leaving enough distance for her to decline the offer.

Darcy smiled-it was so easy to smile around him-and reached for his hands, pulling him to bridge the gap he'd left. "That would be perfect," she said.

Leaning in, he brushed his lips up along the edge of her jaw to her ear. "I have a pressing desire to kiss you," he whispered. His breath was warm against her skin, a contrast to the cool night air.

"What a coincidence," she replied playfully. "I have a pressing desire to be kissed."

Loki pulled back from her neck and gazed at her. Darcy couldn't quite place the look in his eyes; it could have been awe, or reverence, or somewhere in between.

He pressed his lips to hers, softly at first, gentle, languid sweeps that still tasted of the Cabernet Sauvignon he'd had with dinner. She opened her mouth, darting her tongue out, and felt his restraint waver. One hand went to the back of her head, fingers splayed and tangled in her hair and the other was at the small of her back holding her to him.

The embrace deepened, their kisses becoming rushed and desperate. Darcy wrapped her legs around his waist, pulling him closer, feeling the extent of his desire pressed against her. She moaned, a white-hot sensation building at the apex of her thighs. If only they didn't have so many layers separating them…

Loki pulled back, his chest heaving with ragged breaths, and rested his forehead against hers. "If we don't stop now," he panted, "we'll give everyone even more of a show than we already have."

Remembering where they were, Darcy's eyes widened and she looked around them self-consciously. Luckily, nobody seemed to be paying much attention to them but Loki was right-they'd been on the verge of providing a full-on show, free of charge. "Good call. I doubt even France is laid back enough for that." She forced herself to relinquish the hold she had on him and allowed him to help her off the wall.

"Perhaps we'd best return to the hotel. To our respective rooms," he added quickly, no doubt as much for his own sake as for hers.

She simply nodded and took his hand in hers, and they headed back towards the hotel.

* * *

Left to her own thoughts, Darcy replayed their kiss over and over in an endless loop-the difference being that each time the embrace progressed further. What frustrated her most was the knowledge that tomorrow their conference would be underway, drastically cutting down the opportunity for them to further develop their relationship.

She really had to take her mind off his tongue and fingers and what had been pressed up against her..._Ugh-enough!_

"What time are you going down for breakfast tomorrow morning?"

Loki gave her an amused look and raised an eyebrow. "I've never quite had it described as breakfast before..."

Darcy frowned and was about to ask him what the hell he was talking about when she clued in. Going down... She groaned and smacked him on the arm. "_Real_ breakfast! Not..." she leaned in, speaking quietly, "...not oral sex!" She returned to her regular volume. "Anyway, that would be pretty difficult with us in _separate rooms_."

They walked up to their hotel's front doors, which slid open to allow them entry. The desk clerk-a young man, this time-nodded at them in greeting and went back to reading a magazine as they passed by him on their way to the elevators.

"You still haven't answered me about breakfast," Darcy reminded. The door opened and she walked in, Loki following.

To her relief, he gave her an answer that wasn't laced with innuendo. "I was thinking 7:15 might be best since the plan, according to the schedule, is for everyone to meet in the lobby at 8:15. I believe they've charted a bus for those who haven't rented cars."

"7:15 works for me. Can I bum a ride to the meeting with you?"

He looked at her, confused. "Of course you can come with me. You really didn't expect me to leave you to take the bus, did you?"

"Well, I don't like to either assume or impose, so I figured I'd ask." She looked up to see which floor they were passing. _Fifth floor-this has to be the slowest elevator I've ever been in._ Two more floors to go. At this rate, she realised, she'd have just enough time to…

She took him by surprise, that much she knew. When she bridged the gap that separated them, stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his, he was so stunned it took him a moment to react. When his brain caught up with his body, though, he turned them so that she was caught between him and the elevator wall. Without breaking their embrace, he reached down and cupped his hands under her bottom, lifting her off the ground and cradling his hips between her thighs.

His body was hard against hers, his lips demanding. His fingers dug almost painfully into the sensitive flesh where her thighs met her ass, but it only served to fuel Darcy's need even further.

The rocking motion they'd begun, together with the passionate, open-mouthed kisses they were sharing, had her brain spinning. She could feel a tightness building inside of her, increasing with every thrust, and then... it was gone. Loki had pulled back, gently placing her on her feet.

She was about to ask him what the fuck was up when she noticed the open elevator door.

"Seventh floor," he announced, his voice rough. He gave her an even look, clearly frustrated. "Next time we do this, it's going to be somewhere we can finish it because I can't be playing this game." He exhaled and smiled wearily, letting her know he wasn't mad at her. "Sweet dreams, Darcy." He disappeared behind the door and Darcy was left standing there, still shaken from the intensity of the moment.

_And we still had our clothes on,_ she thought. _What the hell's it going to be like when we finally have sex?!_

She made her way to her room, still in a daze. There was no question as to what she needed to do: pour herself a hot bath and finish on her own what she and Loki had started.

* * *

She was five minutes late. Normally that wouldn't bother her (unless she was going to work, of course) but Darcy'd had proof yesterday about how punctual Loki was, and she didn't want to keep him waiting. She checked her watch once again as she waited for the elevator, which seemed to be even slower than usual.

A woman walked over and stood next to her, also waiting for the elevator. Tall with long blonde hair, she looked to be a few years older than Darcy-maybe closer to Loki's age-and was wearing a flowery sundress ideal for the south of France. Darcy greeted her with a smile. "Hope you brought a magazine," she said. "I think the next ride down is scheduled a week from now."

The other woman laughed. "It _is_ exceptionally slow, isn't it?"

She had an accent which Darcy wasn't quite able to place. It was almost like a blend of Australian and Dutch, but it was hard to pinpoint precisely which it sounded more like. "I'm sorry if this seems rude, but do you mind if I ask where you're from? I've never heard your accent before."

Finally, the elevator doors opened and the two women stepped inside.

The blonde smiled at Darcy-she genuinely seemed to be a very friendly person. "Oh, I don't mind. I'm from Kimberley, in South Africa."

"Wow! You're very far from home. Are you here for business or pleasure?"

"I'm attending a conference which is taking place in town. I work for a systems development company."

Darcy couldn't help but grin. "Globalcomm?"

The other woman's eyes widened. "Are you also attending the conference?"

"Yup!" she held out her hand. "Darcy, New York office. Have you met any of the others yet?"

"No-you're the first. I'm Anika."

The elevator reached the main floor and both women got off and headed for the breakfast area. "You can sit with Loki and me, then. I won't let you sit by yourself."

"Loki Odinson? The one who works in Innovations?!"

Now it was Darcy's turn to be surprised. "Um... yeah, that Loki."

Anika stopped and put her hand on Darcy's wrist. "Is he as handsome as they say?"

The American leaned in conspiratorially, and whispered. "Even hotter." For obvious reasons, she kept the fact that he was an amazing kisser to herself.

"Oh, my!" Anika pretended to fan herself and both women burst out into laughter.

"Come on, Ani. Let's go find ourselves something to eat. I don't know about you, but I'm all about starting the day with a good breakfast."

They walked into the dining room, which was already bustling despite the early hour. Darcy spotted Loki, who was sitting at a full table. She waved, and he waved back, giving her an apologetic smile.

"Is that him?" Anika asked.

Darcy nodded. "Yes, that's him."

They found an empty table and set their purses down. "You're right, Darcy. That man is hot!"

They both chuckled and set out to find some breakfast. Darcy didn't know where to begin-there were chafing dishes with eggs and sausages, trays of fresh fruit, bread and pastries, cheeses and cereal and yogourt.

When she returned to her table, Anika was already there and had been joined by another woman and a man. "Darcy, this is Carmen from the office in Brazil and Gustave from Paris. Carmen, Gustave, Darcy is from the New York office."

Darcy shook their hands and sat down to enjoy the assortment of breakfast items she'd collected along her walk throughout the room. "They sure know how to serve breakfast over here, don't they?" she remarked.

Gustave finished a bite of scrambled eggs-which had been way too runny for Darcy's taste-and spoke up. "This is very particular to the Mercure," he said in a heavily-accented English. "I have stayed at other hotels in the region and the breakfast offerings are not so varied."

"Lucky us, then," Darcy replied, groaning as she bit into a croissant. "Oh God... This is the best croissant I've ever had..."

At that moment, someone approached their table. Darcy looked up and saw Loki standing next to her.

"Good morning, everyone. I take it you're enjoying your breakfast?"

Darcy and her companions all answered in the affirmative, each at varying stages of chewing food. Loki introduced himself to Anika and Carmen but it was obvious, by the wide grin and vigourous handshake/man hug that he and Gustave shared, that they were already familiar.

"Gustave! Ça va?" he asked the other man.

"Bien oui-je suis entouré de belles dames ce matin; je suis un homme chanceux!"

Darcy didn't understand everything the Frenchman said, but managed to catch "lovely ladies" and "lucky man" and couldn't help but smile. "Merci," she interjected, letting them know that whatever comments passed between the two men would most likely be understood to some extent.

Loki smiled at her, tilting his head in acknowledgement. "I'm sorry to interrupt your breakfast but I was hoping to steal Darcy for a moment."

Darcy frowned, but placed her napkin on the table and stood up. "Sure." She promised her table mates a speedy return and followed him to the patio, just outside a set of glass doors. "What's up?"

"I'm sorry about the table," he began apologetically, "but the directors arrived just after me." He smiled warmly and she couldn't help but respond in kind. "I'd much rather have spent my breakfast in your company."

"Look, it's no big. Really, it isn't. It gave me the opportunity to meet some of the others. Anyway," she added,"I'd rather have you all to myself than to have to share you. We'll have a chance to chat on the ride to the conference."

The young man shifted uncomfortably on the spot, changing his weight from one leg to another and then back again. "Yeah, about that... I have two things I need to speak with you about, neither of which you'll like, I'm afraid."

"Okay..." Darcy said, not liking where this was going. "What's the first thing?"

"I've been invited to join the others at my table to the conference in Jim Nelson's car, which means that you'll have to take the bus." He paused, waiting for her reaction.

Darcy was disappointed, but realised it wasn't Loki's fault. It made it easier to accept seeing that he seemed about as disenfranchised about riding with the brass as he'd been excited to ride with her. "Don't worry about me," she told him. "I can sit with Anika and the others. It probably is for the best-we'll attract less attention this way."

Loki was visibly relieved, but his face became guarded again. "I don't expect you'll take the second piece of news as well," he warned. "Jim would like you to share your presentation on the Powell project with the group during tomorrow's session on Project Management. It seems that Ted Lyons has been singing your praise to whomever will listen."

It took Darcy a moment to realise a) what Loki had said and b) that he wasn't joking. "What?!" she yelled, panic gripping her. Her companion reached out to place a hand on her arm and pulled back just in time, no doubt realising that they had an audience by now thanks to Darcy's outburst.

"I tried to change their minds-our schedule is tight as it is-but Jim and Collette are bent on seeing this presentation of yours." He cast a quick glance at the diners still enjoying their breakfast inside the hotel and shifted his gaze back to her. "Darcy, you are an exceptionally talented young woman and this is your chance to broadcast your skills to a global team of upper management. It's hard enough to get an audience with these individuals on their own, but to have them all in one room at once is practically unheard of."

Darcy reached behind her, looking for a seat to fall into. The plastic chair wobbled when she sat down, but it was better than dropping to the ground on her ass. She looked up expectantly at Loki, seized by panic. "How am I gonna pull this off? I've never presented in front of anyone at their level-never mind a group of them. I mean," she laughed nervously, "I've got little cartoony guys in my presentation. I doubt that's going to fly with this bunch."

Loki pulled a chair over and sat across from her, close enough to be supportive and far enough to appear professional. "Do you have a copy of the presentation here?"

"Yes. My manager suggested I save a copy of it to my hard drive just in case I needed to refer to it. I don't think either of us thought I'd need it to present to Jim Nelson and Collette Marchand, though." She made a face, her breakfast threatening to make a comeback.

"Darcy, you don't have to face this alone. If you're willing, I can drop by your room tonight and I can help you adjust your presentation to this particular audience. I've presented to many of them before and know what will keep their interest."

The young woman smiled weakly. "You know, I really want to kiss you right now."

Loki chuckled and sat up straight. "Wouldn't that give everyone an eyeful?" When she'd stood up and they walked towards the doors he added, very quietly, "Perhaps I can take you on your offer tonight in your room, though."


	6. Chapter 6

**A/N: First off, thanks to all the lovely reviews! They are beyond encouraging and help the creative process (hint hint).**

**I realise I've been updating very often, but now that the holidays are nearly over (I'm back at work after New Year's), chapters might be posted closer to a week apart. I will admit that most of this story is already written, but needs a bit of a final polish. As I reread what I've already written, it allows me to relive my experience in Grande Motte and never fails to bring a smile to my lips.**

**Finally, I have been remiss by not thanking my beta, Xtie, for her words of encouragement, her mad editing skills, and for simply joining me in Loki fangirling.**

* * *

6.

Darcy leaned her head against the bus's window and closed her eyes. It had been a long, draining day with only a short break for lunch and she was exhausted. Beside her, Anika was typing away on her smartphone, the clicking of her keyboard barely audible over the hum of the engine.

The group had accomplished more than Darcy could have imagined, and their greatest success-in her honest opinion-was that they'd actually stuck to the tightly packed schedule. It had meant missing out on a morning and afternoon break, but a series of breakout sessions had provided them with opportunities for a visit to the bathroom, a (very) quick smoke or stealing a few snacks from the catering table.

She'd understood quickly why those attending the conference had been hand-picked. Like her, the others were bright go-getters; assemble a group of keen individuals like that and you really can accomplish pretty much anything. Their goal for the first day had been to select areas within the business that needed standardizing and to draft best practices that would be relevant to all global regions. Her team had consisted of Gustave (her breakfast companion from France), a girl from Argentina and another girl from Sweden. Again, Gustave had joked about being surrounded by beautiful women. Unlike most men she'd known, however, he managed to do so without sounding crass or lecherous; maybe it was the French accent, maybe it was because his face was open and genuine, and maybe it was because he was Loki's friend, but she didn't get any bad vibes from him.

She was pulled from her thoughts by a sharp call, replied to by many others. Sitting up straight, she looked around to see what the fuss was about. Anika was leaning partly over her, trying to see through the window. "What is it?" Darcy asked, confused.

"Flamingoes!" the other girl replied excitedly. She pointed a bit ahead of where they were, at an area of the marshland she and Loki had driven by on their way into the city. Sure enough, the area was again littered with pink dots.

From the higher vantage point in the bus, Darcy had a much better view of the birds than she'd had from the car on the drive in. She reached for her camera with the intention of taking a few pictures, but by the time she'd figured out the right settings, the flock was too far for more than a 'Where's Waldo' sort of picture.

She was about to put the camera away when she remembered the horses. "Have you seen any of the wild horses yet?" she asked Anika.

Anika, as well as anyone within earshot, sat up straight and replied "wild horses?!"

_Guess I'm not the only 5 year old around when it comes to horses,_ she thought, amused. "Yeah, keep your eyes out in the fields or near rivers. I saw some on my way in; they're beautiful."

Shelly, the girl from Australia, stood up in her seat and looked at Darcy. "They sound like the Brumbies we have back home," she said. "They're a bloody nuisance, getting into everything."

"Actually, from what I've been told, the cattle ranchers use them to help herd their cattle. I don't know how much of a headache they are for the locals, though." At that moment, a faint hum came from her backpack. Darcy frowned, reaching in to grab her phone. Who could be texting her?

She couldn't hold back the smile that pulled at her lips when she read the note Loki had sent her. _Beautiful herd of horses just after the next roundabout :)_

"Have your camera ready, Ani," she told the woman beside her. "Local gossip tells me there are lots of horses up ahead." She grabbed her own camera, trying to determine the best settings for 'taking photos of nature while hurtling by on a bus at breakneck speed'. Strangely, they hadn't covered that chapter at her photography course.

As she worked at adjusting her own camera, Anika gave Darcy a quick sideways glance. "Loki?" she asked quietly.

She didn't need to say more-Darcy understood full well what the other woman meant. "Maybe," she replied, a little guarded. After all, breakfast and a couple of bus rides didn't give her enough of an idea as to how much she could be trusted.

Anika held her camera, but kept it on her lap. She leaned in, keeping her voice low. "My sister met her husband on a business trip 7 years ago. These days, work is another pond to fish in, so to say."

Darcy's nerves eased a little. "We met on the plane from New York-we were seated next to each other and just hit it off," she admitted. "I don't know where it's going to go, but he seems to be a nice guy."

"You really are on his mind-his eyes were always searching for you at the meeting today." Her focus quickly changed to a point above Darcy's shoulder. "Oh! There they are!"

Their attention switched immediately to the small herd of wild horses who had taken shelter under the canopy of a small cluster of trees. 'Oohs' and 'aahs' rang out throughout the bus, joined in by the frantic clicking of cameras.

When they'd passed the horses, Darcy tucked her camera back into its holder and picked up her iPhone. _Thanks :_) she wrote Loki back. She added _Going to have to eat dinner early I'd I need to work on that presentation_, with an immediate correction of _if! If I need... stupid autocorrect_

Loki's response came quickly; Darcy guessed he wasn't immersed in conversation with his bigwig car companions if he had time to chat with her. _I can grab some dinner and bring it to your room. We could eat and work on your pres._

She bit back a silly grin and focused on typing accurately. The last thing she needed to do was to ask him for cock when she really meant Coke; those were hilarious only when they happened to someone else. _Sounds great. What do you feel like having?_

Again, his text came almost immediately. _Do you like mussels? There's a place down by the water that has the best muscles in town._

Darcy snorted. _ I thought you had the best muscles in town ;P_. Still chuckling, she hit 'send' and typed a second note. _And yes I do like mussels. That will make me a very happy girl._

_Hahaha. I will use my best in town muscles to bring you best in town mussels as soon as I can. See you then._

_Can't wait!_ She hesitated, considering adding a kissy smilie at the end, but chickened out and simply hit 'send'. After all, she preferred to give him a kiss for real when he showed up at her door.

Outside her window, Grande Motte's city limits were approaching, the small town's distinct architecture clearly visible. Darcy looked forward to the comfort of her room and to the prospect of recharging her batteries before hunkering down with Loki to revamp her report.

The prospect of presenting was both exciting and scary as all hell; she wasn't even sure she could grasp the magnitude of what it meant that people from the global board of directors had asked her to present. Not only would she be putting herself and her abilities on the line, she'd be representing the whole New York office. If she fucked up and looked bad, her whole team would end up looking bad.

_But I won't fuck up_, she told herself. _I rock at presenting, which is why I always get stuck with the job at the end of every project_. Her self-affirmation helped raise her spirits enough to crawl out of panic mode and she felt a few of the butterflies leave her stomach.

The bus pulled up alongside the hotel and everyone began to shuffle out. Anika turned to face her, her eyes bright and face chipper. Darcy wondered how she'd managed to pull through such a tedious day with so much leftover energy.

"I was thinking of seeing if anyone wanted to meet up for dinner later on," the other woman said. "Are you game?"

Darcy readjusted her backpack, which seemed to have gained ten pounds since she'd left the conference hall. "Sorry, but I'm gonna have to sit this one out," she apologised. "I'm going to take 40 then I have a presentation to recalibrate."

"You're going to eat, though, right? Because, if you want, I can bring something up to you."

"That's sweet of you, _Mom_, but I'm good." She smiled and leaned in closer to her friend. "I've already ordered in."

Anika waggled her eyebrows. "Starting with dessert, huh? Now you're making me miss my hubby."

Darcy laughed out loud and smacked her on the arm. "You're awful," she said shaking her head. "He promised to help me clean up my presentation. It's all very noble." Leaning in, she added "I'm going to leave non-noble for after tomorrow, when I can breathe easy again."

They entered the hotel together, but Anika stayed behind to find dinner companions. Darcy landed an elevator all to herself; when the doors closed she sighed and rested against the wall, leaning her head back.

The whole way up to the seventh floor her thoughts were on her bed and pillow, their cushy comfort beckoning to her. When the doors finally opened, she dragged herself to her room, unlocked the door and…

...and her eyes fell upon her balcony, awash in bright, direct sunlight. All thoughts of sleeping disappeared, replaced with the desire to hop into her bikini and sunbathe. After all, when else would she have the opportunity to catch some rays? The week's schedule was jam packed with work, work and more work, most of it-if not all-indoors. If she didn't get some sunshine, she rationalized, she might become vitamin D deficient. _Can't have that, now can we?_

Darcy tossed her backpack on the bed and dug through the closet for her bikini. She'd bought it on a whim-more like Jane had shoved it in her hands and told her she looked like a goddess in the deep blue 2 piece-and hadn't been sure if she'd get the opportunity to wear it. After all, she was more into oversized sweaters and t-shirts with cartoon characters on them. Having a private balcony, though, she now had the perfect excuse for wearing it as freely as she wished.

She looked at the clock. It was quarter after five; with restaurants not serving dinner until 7pm she still had lots of time to relax before Loki brought dinner. She could sunbathe for an hour or so, then cue up the presentation on her laptop.

Stepping outside, she let out a contented sigh at the ambiance of her surroundings. The sun, the sea, the warm breeze-it all came together like some wonderful fantasy came true. By the time Loki showed up she'd be as relaxed as could be.

* * *

Darcy had just flipped back onto her stomach when she thought she'd heard a knock at the door. She reached for her iPhone and turned off her music, listening.

Yes, there was definitely someone knocking. She looked at the time-it was quarter to seven-and wondered who it could be. Loki wouldn't be around until 7:30pm-ish-who could it be? Had someone called the front desk to complain about her music?

She got up and walked to her door. Peering through the peephole, all she could see were paper bags.

"Darcy!" It was Loki's voice. "Can you _please_ open the door?!"

The young woman unlocked the door and opened it quickly, holding it open while he squeezed in, his arms full. "I'm sorry," she said. "I didn't think you'd be here so soon. I was out on the balcony and had the music playing." She watched as he deposited the bags of food onto the desk, which was the nearest solid surface.

The mouthwatering scent of seafood hit her and she walked over to peer inside the bags. "Do you want to eat outside? It's beautiful and sunny and... Why are you looking at me like that?"

Loki stood there, staring at her with an inscrutable look on his face. "Are you _trying_ to kill me through temptation?" he asked, exasperated.

Darcy looked down at herself and realised she was still in her bikini. "Do you want me to cover up?" she asked, respectful of the sexual tension that seemed to have him drawn as taut as a bowstring.

He seemed conflicted, what he wanted most likely warring with what he thought she should do. "No. I want you to come here and kiss me."

She smiled, relieved. A large part of her would have been disappointed if he'd requested she cover up. "Then sit down because I'm sick of standing on my tiptoes, tall man."

He did as she requested, pulling the desk chair closer so he could sit in it. One corner of his lips was curled up in an amused smile, but his blue eyes smoldered as they followed her path towards him. Darcy rested a knee on the seat to the left of his thighs and leaned forward, placing a hand over each of his shoulders. She touched her lips to his, slowly, sensually, sighing contentedly. This was what she'd been waiting for all day, and she felt her tension begin to unravel.

She gasped in surprise when he grabbed her by the hips and pulled her against him, kissing her like he hadn't seen her in months. Darcy melted against him, squirming when his fingers began to trace the outline of her bikini bottom. "Hey," she giggled, "you know I'm ticklish."

"How about if I try to tickle your fancy," he purred, leaving a trail of kisses down her throat. His hands cupped her rear, pressing her closer to him, fingers following the curve of the blue satiny fabric separating him from her warm skin.

Reluctantly-_very_ reluctantly-Darcy pulled back from the embrace, taking his hands in hers and sitting back on his lap. "Now it's my turn to splash us with cold water," she said. "We really need to focus on my presentation or else my career's going to take a dive tomorrow." Inhaling deeply, she added "plus, that food you picked up smells amazing. How on earth did you get your hands on dinner before seven?"

Loki shrugged, keeping his secrets to himself. "I have my connections," he offered, cryptically. "Now please go change into a potato sack or something equally unappealing or the board of directors is simply going to have to take my word on your business acumen. I won't be able to think straight with you in that bikini."

Darcy kissed him on the cheek and slid off his lap. "Fine. I'll hop in my jammies if you can set dinner up outside. I can't imagine sitting inside when it's so beautiful out there." She walked over to the closet and pulled out the most modest pair of pyjamas she had, then headed for the bathroom. Once inside, she leaned against the door and let her head fall back with a thump. How on earth were they going to sit side by side for hours with a king-size bed within falling distance and _not_ end up all over each other? The precedence they'd set so far seemed to be leading them on a path straight to mind-blowing sex on a scale of atomic bombs. She'd never experienced anything like it; her relationships had always proceeded like textbook-meet a guy, date him a few times, start at first base (maybe straight to second if she _really_ liked him), then move on from there.

With Loki, however, everything was moving at hyper speed. She'd known him three days yet felt more comfortable in his presence than she had after 2 years with Bryan. Hell, if she walked out of the bathroom and found him on one knee and proposing, chances were she'd say 'yes'. It was like those stories she'd read in the newspaper about people who'd been married for 50 years-they all said they'd simply_ known_ they'd met the love of their life right off the bat.

While her inner Spock roiled at the mere concept of love at first sight, the little Cinderella which resided deep down inside her was ecstatic.

Darcy finally changed into her pyjamas and stepped out to join Loki, who was patiently waiting at the small plastic table on her balcony. He finished typing something on his iPhone and placed it on the table beside his plate. "Much better," he said, standing up when she reached the table. Leaning in to kiss her on the cheek he added, in a whisper, "although it only slightly lessens the desire. You're always beautiful no matter what you're wearing."

She smiled and thanked him. "I really appreciate your offering to help me out with the presentation," she said, taking her seat. "And for the food, of course. It smells delicious." The container in front of her was loaded with mussels in a white wine sauce. She grabbed one from the top-surprisingly it was still warm-and pried the fleshy morsel from the shells. "Bon appétit!"

They discussed the team's accomplishments at the conference over dinner, both equally impressed with what had been achieved.

"I guess my biggest surprise was that we got through the schedule," Darcy said as she broke off a piece of baguette to dip in the broth left at the bottom of her dish. It was so delicious-there was no way any of it was going to waste. "I mean, when we have similar meetings with my own team-there are just five of us including my boss-we never get through half of we set out to do. We go off track, our breaks stretch to double what they're supposed to be by the time we gather everyone back from wherever... There's just no way."

"Collette is renowned for her punctuality," Loki explained as he collected all the empty containers from their meals. He retrieved another bag from the far end of the table-which really wasn't all that far-and pulled out two small boxes. He handed one to Darcy and placed the second in front of himself. "Her strict adherence to a schedule isn't always appreciated, but as you saw today it certainly gets the job done."

"Well, I for one appreciate it." Darcy opened her container and peered at the small puff of pastry drizzled in chocolate sauce and sprinkled with icing sugar. "It's so cute-what is it?"

"It's a profiterole. It's pastry filled with chantilly-this one's homemade, not that dreadful garbage in a squeeze can. These are the best I've ever had anywhere in France."

"I hope you enjoyed me in my bikini, cause after eating like this I'm going to have to start shopping at Muu-muus R Us."

"I greatly doubt that a few days' worth of permitting yourself dessert will land you in the category of the morbidly obese," Loki answered through a bite of pastry.

"True," Darcy admitted, closing her eyes in rapture at the delicate flavour, "but I still have to go through the motions of acting guilty, even if I don't really feel guilty." She licked her fingers clean and pushed the empty container away from herself. "And it was just the right size; I don't think I'm going to have to fight a food coma to work on my presentation."

"That was my intention. If I'd've chosen the crème brûlée we'd both be asleep after the first slide. Speaking of which," he said, standing up, "I'll clean up whilst you get your laptop fired up. Unfortunately, though, it looks like there won't be enough light for us to work outside."

"That's ok, the marina is a distraction for me, anyway." Darcy stretched and walked inside; she had already pulled out her computer, so she powered it up. By the time Loki sat down beside her, she had her presentation on screen.

The young man took a few moments to scroll through the document, pausing every now and then to give something more scrutiny. When he was done he returned back to the first slide. "So. Do you want the good news or the bad news first?"

Darcy's heart sank. She'd hoped he would tell her that it was great as is and only needed a bit of tweaking. After all, Ted Lyons had sat through it and loved it.

But in the grand scheme of things Ted Lyons was a medium fish. This time her audience was big fish-much bigger fish-and Loki was going to be her Rosetta Stone for communicating with them. "Bad news first. I'd rather end off on a high note."

"You have to redo the entire presentation." He winced at her very loud 'WHAT?!' then put up a finger to shut her up. "However, you don't have to change any of your content."

"How the hell does that make any sense?" She argued. "I have to redo everything but not redo it? Now you're talking like Yoda."

Despite her aggressive reaction, Loki remained calm. He'd no doubt expected such an outburst. "What it means is that your slides are much too busy. Your audience tomorrow-well, the one that counts, anyway-will be comprised of 'type A' personalities; they're big picture people who will expect you to give them the most information in the least amount of words. As they are, your slides are too colourful-use a simple background with one bold colour as contrast-and reduce your text to a few words. You can expand verbally, but get their attention visually with a few catchy words-it will help them remember the important points of your presentation."

Darcy sat back down-yes, she'd been _that_ upset-and took a deep breath. "Ok, I think I get what you mean." She picked the one slide where she discussed the incremental funding she'd gained from Innovations; it contained a cartoon character robbing a bank, with a detailed explanation of how said funding had been obtained. Loki rolled his eyes at her choice-pettiness, thy name is Darcy Lewis. "So on this _random_ slide, I should remove the cartoony dude and reduce it to point form steps?"

"I'd go further," he offered. "You can whittle your text down to three words-anticipate, adapt and act. If I'm correct, what you did was anticipate a need, adapt your plan accordingly, and act on it. Call it 'The Three A's', like a play on the three R's."

"Damn..."

"Exactly. You can touch upon all these points in the oral part of your presentation, but they'll remember 'Anticipate, Adapt and Act'. This is the lens through which you need to rework your slides. See it as simplifying."

Darcy nodded in understanding. "Gotcha. This," she pointed to the screen, "is the beginning of an episode of Hoarders-without the mummified cats or mountains of used adult diapers, of course. What I'm aiming for is the post-cleanup 'now you can see the floors and eat off the counters'."

Loki looked at her as if she'd sprouted a second head. "Darcy, you are an odd young woman."

Darcy grinned at him widely. "Hey, it's what keeps me young."

Her good humour was contagious, and soon enough he was also chuckling. "Perhaps I need to inject a little craziness into my life as well."

"Hey, it can't hurt." The young woman drew her hand downward over her face. "Ok, I have to put on my serious face or I won't get anything done."

Loki nodded. "If you don't mind, I also brought my computer so I could catch up on some of my emails. Just interrupt me whenever you need any help."

"Sounds good to me. I was afraid you'd be hanging around looking through my underwear again," she teased.

"Well, there ends my record." Loki sighed dramatically. "I'd gone a whole ten minutes without thinking of sex. I seem to revert to an adolescent whenever I'm in your presence." He leaned forward and placed a chaste kiss on her lips before standing up and walking over to his laptop bag.

Darcy watched him root around in his computer bag, eyeing the play of his lean muscles against his t-shirt. Again, he'd surprised her by going über-casual with a Black Keys concert shirt and a pair of black shorts. So much about him seemed straight-laced, but she was learning there was more to Loki than he let on.

* * *

The next two hours were spent in a companionable silence occasionally punctured by a quick question or comment from Darcy. Music from a nearby club floated in through the open balcony door, and the young woman was amused to see Loki drumming along to the beat with his pen, tapping it alternately on the desk and his laptop. Again, she felt like he was showing her a facet of himself only seen by close friends.

"I brought my air guitar if you want to do a duet," she teased.

Loki paused only long enough to give her a dirty look before resuming his drumming and going back to ignoring her. When she shrugged and turned her attention back to her presentation-she was on her last slide, _finally_-he surprised her by tossing his pen at her, hitting her square in the side of the head.

"Hey!" she complained, picking the pen off the floor and throwing it back at him. He caught it easily and had the audacity to stick his tongue out at her.

The ridiculousness of the situation, paired with the stress of her work and the long day behind her, snapped something inside of her and she began to laugh uncontrollably. Loki watched her, amused, eventually joining her.

"Oh my god, I'm so fried," she managed to say once the laughing fit had subsided. She turned to her laptop and typed a few more keystrokes and hit Save. "Can you please go over this and tell me if I'm good to go? I'll be happy when I can turned the damn thing off and pay some attention to you for a change."

That was all the incentive Loki needed. Without a word he wheeled his chair over to her computer and began to pore through the twenty or so slides she'd revamped. "Brilliant," he said, dead serious. "This is fantastic. It's to-the-point, catchy, yet conveys your message clearly. Bravo, Darcy, you've succeeded."

Darcy let out a "woo-hoo!" and powered off her laptop (but not before saving the presentation again, just in case). She then turned around and saw that Loki had sat down at the foot of her bed. With a twinkle in her eye and a swagger in her hips, she prowled towards him; her gaze darted to the bulge in his shorts-clearly, he was enjoying the show she was giving him.

She placed a hand on his chest and pushed gently; he fell back, following her lead. When she crawled above him on all fours, her soft brown curls creating a curtain around them, she whispered "when was the last time you fooled around like a 17 year old?" His reply was simply to close his eyes and groan. She leaned in closer, her body pressed against his, and brushed her lips against the shell of his ear. "To go through the moves," she rocked against him, "and drive yourself mad with need without actually having sex?"

"_Christ_, Darcy, I don't know," he hissed through clenched teeth. "Too long of a fucking time ago is when."

The young woman smiled and lifted herself off him. "Come on," she said, moving up the bed so that her head was on a pillow. She patted the bed beside her. "Lie down beside me."

When he did as she asked, his blue eyes searching hers-she was sure he was trying to determine whether she was just going to tease him and send him home with a raging hard-on-she leaned forward and kissed him gently and tentatively, trying to emulate a first sensual kiss.

"My parents aren't supposed to be back home for a few hours," she whispered, licking her lips and tracing a finger down the centre of his chest. "I have a few ideas as to how we can pass the time til then..."

When his frown smoothed out and the corner of his lips stretched into a smirk, Darcy knew Loki had caught on to the game. His eyes darted down to her breasts and back to her face, and he cocked an eyebrow. He raised his hand to cup her cheek, his thumb tracing her bottom lip. "What sort of ideas do you have in that pretty head of yours?"

She darted her tongue out, swirling it around the digit and giving it a playful bite. "_Naughty_ ideas," she replied, reaching down and cupping his erection.

As she traced the outline of his cock through his shorts, biting back a chuckle at how his eyes were nearly crossing with lust, she leaned forward again and pressed her lips to his. The embrace was more heated this time and Loki rolled them so that he was partly covering her, his knee resting between her legs. His fingers skimmed the skin that was peeking out between her pyjama pants and top, slowly working their way up under the thin fabric. He pulled back, breaking the kiss, his eyes searching hers. "Tell me if I'm going too fast," he whispered.

Darcy was about to ask him if he was nuts when she remembered the game. _Oh, yeah_… She smiled coyly up at him. "I... I'm good," she said.

He returned her smile and kissed her again, languid strokes of his tongue matching the rhythm of his thigh against her centre. The hand which was exploring under her top reached around to her back, deftly unfastening her bra.

"Hey," Darcy said, breaking role. "There's no way a 17 year old guy is going to be able to blindly undo a bra."

"What can I say," Loki replied casually. "I've always been good with my hands. Now be a good girl and lie back down so these 17 year old hands can finally touch those lovely breasts of yours."

The young woman did as he asked, smiling to herself. Her breath caught in her throat, though, when he cupped her breast and pinched her nipple, rolling it between her thumb and forefinger. She arched her back, the action causing her to press harder against his thigh. The tell-tale pressure was beginning to build up, but she didn't want to come just yet-not when Loki was still fully dressed and in control of himself.

No, that wouldn't do at all.

She lay back down on the bed, forcing her brain to function despite the sensation of Loki's tongue tracing invisible designs down her collarbone. Snaking an arm between their bodies, she popped the button on his shorts and lowered his zipper. His ministrations paused and, when she reached down and took him in her hand, he dropped his head in the crook of her neck and moaned.

"Oh my..." she gasped. "Are they always this big?"

The only reply she received was a choked laugh. It was becoming increasingly difficult to stay in role, and Darcy could tell that Loki's focus was seriously off game. She began to move her hand up and down his length, and whispered in his ear "tomorrow night, Loki, you're going to fuck me until I can't walk."

Loki pulled back and locked gazes with her. "Goddamn right I will," he said, his voice rough. He began rocking back and forth against her, pressing his thigh where it made her moan the loudest. "I'm going to sink my cock into your hot quim and make you scream my name over and over again."

This time, when the she felt her orgasm building, Darcy didn't fight it. She moaned as it washed over her, her body arching off the bed as if electrocuted. Every nerve in her body sang and her mind went blank.

As she came down off her high, she realised she still held Loki's cock in her hand; his whole body was twitching in anticipation, his thrusts becoming increasingly erratic. "Fuck, Darcy, don't stop now; I'm so close," he begged. She slid her hand up and down his length, jerking him off, while her lips and tongue traced the shell of his ear and the taut column of his neck. At last, he groaned and thrust a few times, finally finding his release and collapsing on top of her.

Although he wasn't by any means a big guy, Loki's dead weight was beginning to impact Darcy's ability to breathe properly. "Can't... breathe... here..." she said, trying to wiggle her way out from under him.

"Sorry," he mumbled, rolling onto his back, still breathing raggedly.

Darcy sat up and surveyed the mess, which had ended up mostly on her pyjama bottoms. She pulled them off, wiping a small wet spot on the duvet, and handed them to the young man. "Here, wipe yourself off with these."

Loki accepted the proffered fabric and cleaned himself before tucking everything back where it was supposed to go. He gave her an apologetic smile as he handed the pants back to her. "Sorry about that."

"Meh, it's better than having it go all over the covers or, even worse, all over your shorts. I don't even think you could come up with a plausible story if you met Jim Nelson in the hallways with a huge wet spot on your crotch."

"No, I don't suppose I'd be able to explain that one very easily." He reached up to her, beckoning for her to lie down beside him. When she did, he gently tucked her hair behind her ear and pressed his lips to hers. "Thank you, Darcy."

"It's no big," she replied quietly. "I can just wash the pants in the tub-I've got some Tide tablets in my..."

"Not _that_, silly girl. For everything else. I..." He paused, obviously searching for the right words. "I don't know why it doesn't seem strange to me that we're moving so fast. Why am I not being more cautious? It's not in my nature to jump into situations without examining them from every angle."

Darcy smiled at him. "I'm glad I'm not the only one asking myself those questions. I've been wondering the same thing, but it _feels_ right, and I want to trust my gut right now."

She yawned and looked at the clock; it was just shy of midnight. "Are you going back to your room? Or do you want to stay here?"

He pressed his lips together, mentally tossing a coin. "Fuck it," he said, sitting up. He pulled his t-shirt off and slipped out of his shorts. "I'm going to stay. I'm too tired to really care about appearances right now."

Darcy slipped under the soft duvet and watched Loki lock the door and turn out the lights. When he got into bed beside her, she snuggled into his side and sighed contentedly. Both were sound asleep within moments, their soft breathing mingling with the distant sound of the waves.

* * *

**Thanks again for reading! Please take a few moments-it really doesn't take long-to share your feedback with me, just below :)**


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: And here we are, with another update! This is a longer chapter than the others, but I don't think anyone's going to complain ;) We finally learn a bit more about one of Darcy's new friends-who is it? You have to read to find out!**

**Thanks ever so much to all those who have reviewed, favourited and followed! To those who are following, please feel free to stop by the Review box at the bottom to say hi! To those who have already reviewed-you're always welcome to drop by again to let me know what you're thinking.**

**And finally, warm wishes to all those in Canada and the US who are under a deep freeze. I'm looking at it being -38C (yeah, that's a minus sign) when I get into my car tomorrow morning-brr! Please bundle up and stay safe, folks!**

* * *

7.

Singing.

Someone, or a bunch of someones, rather, were singing in her room. Darcy pushed through the cobwebs of sleep and sat up groggily. Yes, there was definitely singing going on about... spam?!

At that moment an arm shot out from under the sheet and hit the iPhone responsible for the music repeatedly until it stopped. Loki groaned and rolled over, facing Darcy. Or, more to the point, facing her bare thigh. He made a pleased sound and reached over for her, but she scooted away.

"Sorry, Romeo, no time for that this morning. I'm going to want to be extra early for everything or else I'm going to slip back into panic mode." She got out of bed and walked away, giggling at the pout he was giving her. "And what's with that alarm, anyway?" she asked as she rooted through the closet for some clothes.

The young man sat up and leaned back against the headboard. He yawned and dragged his fingers through his mussed hair. "It's Monty Python," he replied. "The Viking song."

Darcy stood straight, a pair of black slacks and a red top draped over her arm, forcing herself to look at anything but the man sitting in her bed; looking meant being tempted, and being tempted meant being late. "Never heard of him," she said. "Is he a stand-up comic or something?"

Loki looked at her incredulously. "Never heard of... Monty Python isn't a someone; it's a comedy troupe. And you've really never heard of them?"

The young woman simply gave him blank stare.

"Not the fish dance? Or the parrot sketch? Or even nudge nudge wink wink?"

"Sorry," she shrugged.

"Darcy, darling," he said, swinging his feet off the side of the bed. "When we're back in the States, you and I are going to have a Monty Python movie night. You like silliness-it'll be right up your alley."

"It's a date, then," she said, walking over to him and kissing him on the cheek. "Do you need to use the washroom? Cause I'm going to go have a shower."

"No, I'm going to head back to my room so I can get ready. Meet you for breakfast in forty minutes?"

"Sounds right," she replied, not really sure if she'd be able to eat anything.

When Loki had gone-after a kiss or two (or three)-Darcy hopped into the shower. She'd never been so nervous for a presentation before and, for the first time, understood all those people who went green at the thought of standing up in front of a crowd.

Loki would be there, and Ani and Gustave and all the others attending the conference; everyone was supportive of one another-it was so unlike the environment at her work where some people wouldn't think twice about throwing her under the bus either to advance their careers or just for the sake of watching her fall. And from her interactions with them, most of the directors attending the conference also seemed really nice.

As she rinsed the shampoo from her hair, she realised that no amount of rationalizing would ease her nerves. The butterflies had settled in her stomach and wouldn't leave until the presentation was underway.

Hopefully they wouldn't make her wait until 4pm to present.

* * *

With the help of Anika, Darcy was able to ride to the conference with Loki.

"Make yourself scarce in ten minutes," the South African had whispered while they were browsing the day's assortment of fresh fruit. "Go up to your room, and I'll send Loki after you. That should time it for you missing the bus, and you can spend some private time together."

Darcy didn't know what to say aside from "Ani, you're the best, you know that?"

The other woman put on an air of absolute haughtiness. "Well of _course_ I know it!"

Both erupted into a fit of giggles and returned to their seats, where Gustave and Loki were immersed in a French conversation that was going by much too quickly for her-or Anika, judging by the blank look she gave them-to understand.

She was still staring at the untouched pieces of pineapple on her plate when she felt someone kick her. She was about to protest when she remembered the plan; looking at her watch, she realised that twelve minutes had gone by since Ani had spoken to her-how long had she been staring at her food?!

Putting on her best Ferris Bueller impersonation, she pushed her chair back. "I'm going to go up to my room for a bit," she announced, making an exaggerated nausea face at her plate of food. "See you all in a few."

She slowly walked back to the elevators, giving Collette a weary smile on her way. The director returned her smile and turned back to the conversation which seemed to have everyone at her table engaged. Darcy noticed, however, that the director's eyes stayed focused on her right until she was in the elevator. _Weird_, she thought to herself as the doors closed. _She can't know that something's up, can she?_

In her room, Darcy packed her laptop and conference papers in her backpack and went out to get some fresh air. The early morning sunshine was just beginning to peek around the corner of her balcony and the air was still chilly enough to give her goosebumps. A few boats were carefully making their way out of the marina and Darcy felt a twinge of jealousy at their ability to simply set off on daily adventures along the Mediterranean.

A knock at her door reluctantly brought her back indoors. Grabbing her bags along the way, she answered it and found Loki patiently waiting for her.

"You realise Anika is one in a million, yeah?" he asked, reaching for her backpack while she closed the door behind her.

"I've already told her that many times over, believe me." While they were waiting for the elevator, Darcy noticed that he was carrying her pack. "I thought you said you looked ridiculous with a backpack."

"Correction. I only look ridiculous if it's mine. I look downright chivalrous carrying a friend's backpack," he teased, winking at her. The elevator door opened and he waved her in first.

As the long descent began, Darcy pressed herself against Loki, leaning her head on his chest. "Thanks for everything," she mumbled into his shirt.

The young man kissed the top of her head and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "My pleasure, darling."

The bus was long gone by the time they walked out of the hotel. Darcy followed Loki to his car and allowed him to hold the door open for her. Although his outdated courtesy had struck her as unusual at first, she had quickly become accustomed to it.

En route to the conference centre, Darcy brought up a topic that had been at the back of her mind. "Do you think Collette suspects anything?" she asked. "When I was going up to my room at breakfast she was watching me like a hawk."

Loki squirmed a bit, looking uncomfortable. "Funny you should mention that; I was trying to find a way to broach the topic."

The pit of her stomach fell lower than it already had with her nerves. "Oh god, this can't be good."

"Actually, it's better than you think. When I left your room this morning, Collette was walking by-her room is on the same floor as yours."

Darcy gasped and threw her hands up to cover her mouth. "She's not in one of the rooms beside me, is she? You don't think she heard anything last night?!"

The young man chuckled. "No, don't worry about that. She invited me to join her in her room-room 706, nowhere near yours-for a chat. Collette was my manager when I first joined Globalcomm at our London office; she's a wonderful person with whom I'd trust my life." He gave her a quick sidelong glance. "There aren't too many people like that at Globalcomm, or anywhere for that matter; it takes a lot to gain my trust."

At these words, some of the knots in Darcy's stomach loosened up. "So what did she say?"

"Her main concern was how much I'd helped you on your presentation. I was honest and told her I'd given you direction on how to adapt it, but that you had done the work yourself."

"Did she believe you?"

"Well, of course she did." He seemed taken aback at Darcy's question. "Trust is a two way street, Darcy. I wouldn't be able to trust someone who didn't trust me to begin with."

_That might explain why I never really trusted Bryan_, the young woman thought wryly. "So she didn't have anything to say about us, then?"

"I wouldn't exactly say that. She did strongly suggest we try to be as surreptitious as possible, as others might not be as understanding as her; she honestly couldn't say what might happen if any of the other directors find out."

"Oh." Darcy sat there, digesting the meaning of what he'd just said. Would they have to call it off until after the conference, or did they just have to be more careful? It was obvious which she preferred, of course. The thought of only being able to hang out with Loki during conference hours was downright depressing.

"The good news is that I was able to convince Collette to have you present first thing this morning. She'd had you scheduled in the late afternoon and I explained that you might not survive the wait." His mouth quirked into a half-smile when he saw her face light up.

"Thanks," Darcy replied, truly grateful. "I wouldn't have been of much use in any of the break out groups, that's for sure. I'd probably be in the bathrooms throwing up."

"You do realise the only reason you're so nervous is that you've blown this entirely out of proportion, yeah?" Loki signalled for the turn into the conference centre and pulled into the next available parking spot.

"I know," she admitted. "I don't know why I've let it snowball-I guess I've been a bit distracted these past few days for some _crazy_ reason."

"Or maybe you haven't been distracted enough."

"What, last night wasn't enough of a distraction for you? I've got a pair of pyjama pants that say otherwise," she teased.

The young man closed his eyes and rested his forehead against his hands which still gripped the steering wheel. "Wonderful. Now _I'll_ be the one with no focus." He undid his seatbelt and reached for the door handle. "As much as I would love to kiss you senseless right now, the chance of someone we know walking by is too great."

"I know," Darcy agreed. "We can save the touchy-feely stuff for tonight."

They both exited the car, grabbed their bags and headed for the building's entrance. Keeping his voice low, Loki said "please stop making promises of touchy-feely activities or I'm going to be sporting wood all day."

Just then Jim Nelson, who was standing outside the main entrance, walked over towards them. "Darcy! How are you?" he asked, concerned.

"Better, thanks." She offered him a warm smile. "Just a minor case of nerves," she offered. "I'm right as rain, now."

Jim turned to Loki. "Collette told me she'd asked you to stay behind and make sure Darcy had a ride to the conference. Thanks for lending a hand, Loki."

If Collette's help surprised the young man, he didn't let it show. "It was no problem, Jim. I'm glad I was able to help out."

They all walked into the hall together, and Jim led Loki to a table at the back of the room to discuss a break out group they would be co-leading later in the day.

Meanwhile, Darcy walked over to the front of the large room where Collette was setting up her laptop. "Good morning," she said, announcing her arrival to avoid surprising the director who was engrossed in finding a file on her computer.

"Oh! Darcy-glad to see you made it," the older woman said with a slight French accent. "How are you, my dear? I hope we haven't put you too ill at ease with our request to hear your presentation."

Collette's warm personality immediately set Darcy at ease; she hadn't yet had the opportunity to interact with her, but now she could see why Loki was fond of the director. The young woman pulled her laptop out of her backpack, powering it up. "Out of my comfort zone, yes; ill at ease, not so much. I know that once I start talking I'll do a great job; it's just the waiting that I'm having issues with," she admitted. Lowering her voice, she added "thanks, by the way, for moving your schedule around so I could present earlier. I really, really appreciate it."

The director moved closer to the young woman and addressed her just as quietly. "I've known Loki for ten years. He's always been a consummate professional dedicated to his work and for that I've always appreciated him. However," she smiled warmly at Darcy, "I'm happy to see that he's finally found someone to distract him from his work. Loki does not let many people near to his heart; I'm sure you are a very special young lady for him to have fallen for you in such a short time."

Darcy was gobsmacked. How much had Loki told Collette this morning? Or had the woman simply relied on her intuition and read between the lines? She didn't know how to respond to the other woman, so she simply said the first thing that came to mind. "Loki is very lucky to have a friend like you."

While they had been speaking, the other attendees had all taken their seats and were chatting amongst each other. Only Loki was watching the two women, and Darcy gave him a wink before turning her attention back to her computer. In no time, she had her presentation on screen and was being introduced by Collette.

"Good morning, everyone. I hope you all had a good afternoon yesterday and were able to enjoy some sunshine. We have a slight change in schedule today. We will focus on project management this morning, and the importance of teamwork this afternoon. We have a very fun and interactive activity planned for the teamwork session which will help keep us awake through those difficult afternoon hours." This comment drew chuckles from the crowd, as well as a few cheers. "To start us off on the topic of project management, we have invited Darcy from the New York office to share with us her presentation on a project she co-led earlier this year. It is a very good example of all the elements that are necessary to ensure success with a project." She turned to Darcy and nodded.

The instant the spotlight was on her-only figuratively, of course-Darcy's self-confidence resurfaced. "Good morning everyone!" She waited until her audience finished wishing her a good morning as well. "I am very excited to have the opportunity to share the following presentation with you. Our project with The Powell Group, a major architectural design group in New York, was my first opportunity to help lead a team..."

At the front of room, in front of her peers and the directors, Darcy was in her element. Her enthusiasm for her work shone through, and her presentation took off smoothly.

* * *

Although the butterflies disappeared as soon as she started speaking it wasn't until the very end, when she asked if anyone had any questions, that Darcy felt like she could breathe.

The applause wasn't surprising-after all, she was among supportive peers-but the fact that nearly half her audience raised their hand to ask a question floored the young woman. Just as nothing is worse than a disinterested audience, nothing is better than seeing how your ideas can trigger meaningful conversations.

Collette had to interrupt after 20 minutes in the spirit of trying to rein the group back into the schedule, but offered everyone a much-appreciated 10 minute break. Darcy used that time to find herself a seat; while she was pulling out her papers she was nearly bowled over by an excited Anika.

"Darcy, you rock!" the other woman said, squeezing her. "That was an amazing presentation-you _have_ to share your secret with me because I'm a horrible presenter." She pushed her lip out into a pout to add effect.

"Thanks, Ani," Darcy replied. "I will be more than happy to share my secrets with you as long as you let go of me long enough to let me use the bathroom."

Laughing, both women made their way to the toilets. Those people who were milling about by the catering tables congratulated Darcy on a job well done, but the one person she wanted to see most was nowhere in sight. _Oh well_, she thought to herself, _hopefully I'll get to see him at lunch_.

There were a few people still in the bathroom and Darcy nodded to Jean-François, the Canadian representative. Oddly enough, it had taken the American less time to get used to the co-ed bathrooms than many of the folks from other countries. By the time she was washing her hands, only she, Anika and someone in the far stall were left.

"Have you seen Loki around anywhere?" she asked Anika while they dried their hands. At that moment, the door to one of the stalls opened and Loki walked out.

"Ask and ye shall receive," he said, approaching the sinks.

Anika smiled and patted Darcy on the arm. "I'm going to leave you two alone," she said as she walked out. "Don't be too long, though, or they might decide to send in a search and rescue party."

As soon as they were alone, Darcy walked over to Loki and wrapped her arms around his waist. "Thank you so much," she said, her words partially muffled by his suit jacket.

"You were wonderful out there, darling," he said, keeping his voice low despite them being the only two occupants in the bathroom. "You provided a stellar performance; the directors were very impressed."

"I had lots of help," the young woman replied, pulling back to look at him.

"What we saw this morning-that was all you, Darcy. While public speaking can send a wave of fear into even the most seasoned individuals, you're a natural-you came across as funny, intelligent, and sure of yourself."

She'd already thanked him verbally, so Darcy stood on her tiptoes and pressed her lips against his for a short but heated kiss. She leaned back in for another kiss-who could stop at just one?!-when the door opened and someone walked in.

By the time Jim Nelson walked around the corner, they were at individual sinks washing their hands. "Darcy!" he said, smiling widely. "Great presentation-you did a fantastic job up there. Thanks again for agreeing to share your experience on the project with us." He nodded in greeting at Loki, then paused. "Are you wearing lipstick?"

For the first time ever, Darcy was able to come up with a story immediately rather than ten days later. Using her best 'I told you so!' voice, she turned to Loki and said "I told you it looks like you're wearing lipstick. You really need to go buy yourself a new chap stick." She shook her head for added effect, thanked Jim for his kind words, and walked out of the bathroom, stepping to the side and waiting for Loki.

Not two minutes later the young couple was making its way back to the conference room. "Ok. That was too close for comfort," Darcy said, her hand over her heart. "Off topic, have you ever been to the town where we're having our dinner tonight? I had to Google the name-I'd never heard of it. It looks pretty cool, though."

"Aigues Mortes? Yes, I have been a few times. It's a very beautiful little town but we won't have a chance to see much of it tonight. Perhaps we can make an outing of it on Thursday afternoon, after the conference is over."

"That sounds great. At least I'll get to do one touristy thing before I leave on Friday." It took her a few seconds to notice that Loki had stopped walking. She turned around to look at him and saw that he seemed confused. "What?" she asked.

"You're leaving on Friday?"

"Well, yeah. The conference is over on Thursday; why would I stay longer?"

"My flight's on Saturday."

Darcy's heart sank. By now she'd simply assumed they would be making the trip home together; she didn't even want to think of what it would be like to spend all that time at the airport or on the plane alone-even if it was business class. She was about to say something when the sound of music could be heard from their conference room-a signal that the session was about to resume.

"Come on," Loki said, "we'll talk about it later. We need to switch back to our project management hats until lunch." He placed his hand in the small of her back-the most contact they could allow themselves in such a visible location-and they walked back to the room in contemplative silence.

* * *

Collette had been right. The afternoon activity had truly been a blast and the entire group had enjoyed themselves immensely.

The activity, led by Loki and Jim, was the Marshmallow Challenge, where groups of 3 or 4 were given 20 raw spaghetti sticks, one yard each of tape and string, and one marshmallow; the goal was to build the tallest structure with the marshmallow on top within 18 minutes.

To make things more complicated, they had divided the group into teams where no one had worked together yet; this made it more challenging because they had to discover each other's strengths as they went. Darcy's teammates were Shelly-the girl from Australia, Alexsander from Moscow and James from Ireland. Being such a social person, Darcy appreciated the opportunity to make new friends almost as much as the activity itself.

After a very quick introduction, Alexsander had thought of asking everyone what their fields of study had been at school-they had two systems designers, a statistician and an engineer. With this information, the group's general consensus was to defer the basic building plans to James, the engineer. The others then worked on assembling their materials into a tower which was structurally sound enough to bear the weight of their marshmallow, yet tall enough to satisfy their competitiveness.

In the end, the grand prize-bragging rights-was claimed by Gustave's group, which had been comprised of a finite mathematics major, a systems developer, an engineer and a data administrator who was the child of two architects.

Everyone had agreed that the challenge was not only good fun, but also a valuable exercise in teamwork which emphasized the importance of sharing ideas, leveraging strengths and focusing on a goal.

At the end of the day, when the attendees were gathering their belongings, Collette reminded them of the group dinner which was taking place that night. "The bus will be picking you up outside the hotel at 6:15pm sharp so please ensure you are punctual. Our reservation is for 7pm, and if we are on time we may have a chance to do a little bit of shopping or sightseeing. For those of you who are driving, the restaurant is the Dit-Vin; it is only a short distance from the main gates and you can meet the rest of us there for 7pm."

Darcy grabbed her backpack and walked over to where Anika was shoving papers in a messenger bag. "So," she said, hopping up to sit on the table. "Are you dressing up tonight?"

The other woman buckled her bag and hoisted the strap over her shoulder. "I will if you are. I brought a smart little dress that I'd love to wear, but only if I'm not the only one playing dress up."

They exited the room side by side. "It's a deal, then," Darcy confirmed. "We're dressing to the nines."

"Who's dressing to the nines?" Loki asked as he and Gustave caught up to them.

"We are," Anika replied. "We both brought nice dresses-why let them hang in the closet when we can find a reason to wear them?"

"You realise most of the group will be dressed casually, yeah?" Loki said.

"Loki," Gustave chided. "A man never stops a woman who wants to feel beautiful."

They arrived at the parking lot and Darcy hesitated. She could play it safe and hop on the bus with Gustave and Anika, or she could go with Loki and chance… Chance what? What _would_ someone really think if she went along for a ride in Loki's car? What would people think if Gustave and Anika hopped into a car together? Would they assume that they're in a relationship, or would they simply think they were good friends? And why would it be different for Loki and herself?

"Oh, fuck it," she muttered to herself. Loki looked at her questioningly, and she explained. "I think we're over analysing this whole situation. No one's going to guess that anything is going on between us just because we ride back to the hotel together."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that," the young man said, eyeing the bus uncertainly. "However, I'm growing tired of hiding my affection for you from everyone. We're not 17 year olds, after all." He took her backpack from her and hooked it over his shoulder, and placed his hand at the small of her back. "Let's go. The sooner we leave, the sooner I get to see you 'dressed to the nines'."

They walked across the parking lot to the Mercedes-and no, Darcy still wasn't past the thrill yet-and drove off ahead of the bus.

Not long after they'd left, Loki's phone rang. He pulled it from his jacket pocket and glanced at the caller ID before answering. "Gustave-what's up?" There was a slight pause before the young man spoke again. "English, Gustave. You know I can't drive and do French at the same time."

He held the phone tightly against his ear. "Wait," he said, frowning and straining to hear. "Are you fucking kidding me?"

Darcy watched the road nervously, concerned about how he was splitting his attention between the call and his driving. After all, they were approaching a string of busy traffic circles. She was confused, though, when he broke into a huge grin, his eyes dancing. "Of course I want to go! Hold on..."

He cast a quick glance in Darcy's direction. "Gustave has received an email saying that Daft Punk is playing a concert at a discotheque not far from the hotel tonight. First 200 people to reply get passes. Are you in?"

"Holy shit!" she exclaimed. "I am so totally in! But we have to invite Ani, too."

"Darcy's in, but wants Anika to come. Oh, that's brilliant, then." He threw Darcy a quick glance. "Anika's with Gustave-she's in, too." His attention turned back to his phone. "All right, then. We'll talk about it in more detail over dinner tonight, yeah? Ok, cheers, mate."

"Wow. Daft Punk, huh? I think we're gonna be tired tomorrow morning." Darcy commented.

"You're probably right. Although Gustave and I have had our fair share of late nights, many of which neither of us can remember," he said, chuckling to himself.

"So what's Gustave's story, anyway? He seems like a really nice guy."

"Gustave and I both started with Globalcomm the same year. That was ten years ago " He paused, seeming to realise what he'd just said. "Hell, I can't believe it's been that long. Anyway, I was at the London office and he was at the office in Reims and we met at a conference similar to the one we're currently attending. We hit it off immediately and became close friends. I was even the best man at his wedding."

That piece of information pulled Darcy's attention from searching the countryside for wild horses. "Gustave is married?!"

"_Was_ married," Loki corrected. His voice took on a cold tone as he went on. "He kicked his slut of a wife out a few years ago."

The young woman was shocked at the vitriol that lay behind his words. "Slut? Isn't that a bit harsh?"

"The woman hit on me at her own fucking wedding, Darcy. I didn't tell Gustave because I thought she'd had a few too many drinks. But over the course of the next few years she kept trying to get into my pants. I finally got fed up and told him." He made the turn onto the road that led into town, his face ashen. "It nearly cost us our friendship-he refused to believe me. But eventually she became sloppy and it was obvious even to him. Now it's just him and the two kids."

Again, Darcy did a double-take. "Hold on. He has _kids_?!"

"Yes, he does. Rémy is six and Anaïs is three. They're beautiful children; Anaïs is a real clown-I'll have to show you pictures of them." He pulled into the Mercure's parking lot and parked the car. He turned to face her, dead serious. "Please don't tell him I told you about his wife's indiscretions. Although it's water under the bridge, it's a very private topic for him; not many are privy to why they're no longer together. His kids, on the other hand, you can bring up-he'll spend hours telling you about all of Rémy's football trophies."

They exited the car and began to walk towards the hotel's entrance. "Football trophies, huh? I didn't know football was big in France."

Loki laughed and wrapped an arm around Darcy's shoulders. "That's soccer to you, darling. Everywhere else in the world it's called football."

As they rode in the World's Slowest Elevator, Darcy's mind turned to dinner. "What time do you want to pick me up?"

Loki looked at his watch. "It's just after five. Does six o'clock give you enough time to get ready?"

"Yeah, an hour's more than enough time. Anyway, if you happen to come by early, and I'm not fully dressed yet..."

The young man's mouth stretched into a naughty smile, his eyes caressing her chest. He pulled back as if he'd remembered something, instantly switching to serious mode. "We're going to have to pick up some rubbers if we're planning on having sex," he stated. "I certainly didn't bring any with me-didn't foresee needing them."

Darcy stood on her tiptoes and pressed herself against him. She reached up and pulled his face to hers, whispering against his lips. "I have an IUD. We don't need condoms unless you really want to."

Loki's eyes closed and he let out the breath he'd been holding. "Damn it, Darcy, you're going to be the death of me." He pressed his lips against hers desperately, his hands clutching her to him.

"Isn't it called 'la petite mort' in French?" she purred. "Sounds worth it to me."

The elevator chose that moment to reach the seventh floor. The door opened and Darcy reluctantly took a few steps back into the hallway. "See you at six", she said, blowing him a kiss.

She made her way back to her room, wondering how they were going to last the evening without finding a release to the building tension


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: Another week, another update! I can't believe how quickly the days are going by. Hugs to those who reviewed the previous chapter :)**

* * *

8.

Darcy was expecting Loki at 6pm sharp, so it came as a surprise when there was a knock at her door at quarter to six. _What now?_ she wondered, putting her mascara down on the bathroom counter and walking to the door.

She answered the door to find Loki standing there, a mixed bouquet of flowers in his hand, dressed sharply in the suit he'd worn on the trip to Grande Motte. Darcy's brain nearly short-circuited at the sight of him-_is it possible to die from too much romance?_

"They're beautiful," she exclaimed, finally stepping back to let him in. He kissed her on the cheek and handed her the flowers, and she gave in to the temptation of inhaling their delicate scent. "They smell so nice—I can't wait to come back to my room tonight after they've been in here for a few hours. The whole room's going to smell flowery."

Loki tucked a stray lock behind her ear and leaned in again, this time pressing his lips to hers for a short kiss. He pulled back and looked at her, smiling. "Their beauty pales in comparison to yours, darling."

Darcy snorted. "Shyeah. Thanks, though. They really are beautiful." She frowned, realising that something was missing. "I don't have anything to put them in, though."

The young man started. "Oh! Of course!" He opened the door and bent down to pick something up off the ground. He returned with a glass vase and handed it to her. "Borrowed from the front desk. We can simply leave it in the room and it will be returned to them."

"Sweet. I'll put the flowers in the vase and then finish getting ready. We should be good to go by six." She did a double-take when he followed her into the bathroom, closed the lid on the toilet, and sat down. "You going to keep me company?" she asked, amused.

"I've always enjoyed watching a woman get ready for a night out. There are elements of art, mystery, eroticism…"

"Mystery?" Darcy laughed. "How is a woman putting makeup on mysterious?" She placed the vase of flowers on a clear spot on the counter and reached for the mascara she'd put down earlier.

"Well, in a sense you're putting a mask on—you're altering your features. Making your lips look fuller, adding colour to your cheeks, changing the shape of your eyes—or making it seem so, at least. I enjoy watching the deliberate decisions that lead to the transformation." He smiled seductively. "I find it very sexy, actually."

The young woman stared at him through the mirror, paused in mid-application of her mascara. "I'd never thought of it that way," she admitted. She finished applying her eye makeup, feeling oddly self-conscious.

Loki got up and stood behind her, placing his hands on her hips. "Have I told you yet how ravishing you look in that dress? The cut is very flattering, not to mention that green is my favourite colour." He placed a kiss at the base of her ear, followed by others down the column of her neck. "I'm not going to be able to think straight all night."

Darcy closed her eyes and sighed, leaning back into his embrace. "Mmm… we should stop or else we won't make it out the door…"

"It'll be your fault for telling me we don't need rubbers," he teased. He pulled back, watching as she put her lipstick on. He chuckled to himself, finding something funny, but didn't share.

"Come on," she chided. "Share with the class. What's so funny?"

"I was just thinking of this afternoon in the bathroom, when Jim nearly walked in on us."

"Oh god, that was close. I can't believe I came up with that chap stick story." Darcy walked out of the bathroom, Loki following behind.

"It was pure genius and got us out of what could have been a tight spot." He watched as she pulled her shoes out of the closet. "You might want to reconsider those; Aigues Mortes is almost entirely paved with cobblestone."

The young woman looked at the shoes she held in her hand—the five inch wedges she'd bought specifically to wear with her new dress—and paused. "I'll risk it," she decided. "But I'll also bring my flats in case it gets too hard to walk—does that sound reasonable?"

"Not at all," he replied, "but then again I can't imagine how you walk in those to begin with, so I'm a bad judge of what can and can't be done in heels."

"Pfft," she scoffed. "I used to go to raves in platform shoes. You just need to change your centre of gravity." She threw her flats into her bag, double-checked that she had her room key, and off they went.

It was just the two of them in the elevator on the way down. Darcy was grateful they'd agreed to head out early; the extra ten minutes would give them the time to slip away without drawing too much attention.

_Or maybe not_, the young woman mused as they went from the quiet of the elevator to the din of a packed lobby. Darcy looked around for Anika but didn't see her in the crowd-she was no doubt going to be fashionably just-shy-of-late.

"Darcy!" Tilde, the girl from Sweden, separated from the crowd and walked over to the American. "I love your dress!" she raved. "It looks great on you."

"Thanks," the young woman replied, a bit gobsmacked. If anyone from her office had complimented her in the same fashion she'd either think it was sarcasm or they wanted something from her. But Tilde's words seemed to be given honestly, so she smiled and took them at face value. "I figured I brought it so I might as well wear it."

Tilde's focus shifted to Loki at that moment, and her eyes went from him to Darcy and back, one eyebrow slightly raised. "Will you be joining us on the bus?" The question seemed to be directed at both of them yet neither one in particular.

Loki smiled and shook his head. "We're going to head out a few minutes early to get a bit of shopping done. My mother has requested a replenishment of fleur de sel; she somehow refuses to believe that the fleur de sel sold in England really comes from France." He rolled his eyes and Tilde laughed.

"I'll see you there, then. Have a safe drive," she said, returning to a group of people sitting on the couches as Loki and Darcy made their way out to the parking lot.

"As nice as she is, I can't help but think that Tilde intercepted me as part of a recon mission," Darcy said as they approached the Mercedes.

"Would it bother you if she had?" Loki held the passenger door open for her.

The young woman pondered the question as he walked around to the driver's side. When he got in, she answered him. "Yeah, I guess it would bother me because no one's actually asked either of us straight out if something's up between us; they'd rather gossip."

They pulled out onto the street and set off towards the medieval city of Aigues Mortes. "I have had one person ask me, actually," Loki admitted. "Apart from Collette, of course."

Darcy turned to look at him. "Who?"

"Gustave. I accompanied him to the smoking area during one of our few breaks today and it was just the two of us, so he asked me what's up between the two of us." He glanced quickly in her direction. "You can't tell me Anika hasn't been curious. You women seem to have a sixth sense about these things."

"Oh, she knows," Darcy replied. "She asked me yesterday on the bus ride back from the conference and I hinted there might be something going on."

Loki stopped the car behind a lineup of vehicles. Darcy craned her neck but couldn't see up ahead; when she asked him what was going on, he pointed ahead of them at a bridge on the road. "They're going to lift the bridge to allow some boats to cross. There's always a bit of a rush of boats around this time; I suppose people finished work and are headed out for a sail before dinner."

Again, Darcy felt a pang of envy towards the boat owners. "Wouldn't that be nice, to be able to just say 'hey, why don't we go for a short sail along the Mediterranean while dinner's cooking?'"

"Thor owns a boat a lot like those sailboats over there," he pointed at a few boats moored along the narrow channel. "Of course, he uses it primarily for chasing storms but he's been known to throw a few parties on it, too." Finally the boats passed and the bridge was brought back down. Loki followed the traffic along the narrow roadway.

"That sounds fun," the young woman replied. "Well, the partying part; not so much the storm chasing part."

They came up to a roundabout where a post with a sign reading "Aigues Mortes" was indicating the way. "Not really hard to find, is it?"

"No," the young man agreed. "The signage is surprisingly well organized in this part of France."

He pulled into a parking lot and Darcy looked out her window, gasping at the sight before her. "Oh my god-it's a real castle!"

"Actually, it's not really a castle. It's more of a... walled city, if you will." Loki found a parking spot and they both exited the car.

"Tom_ay_to, tom_ah_to," she said dismissively, standing at the rear of the car and staring at the medieval stonework. "The walls are crenelated and there are towers. In my books, that's a castle."

The young man chuckled and took her hand in his. "As you wish, darling." He began to move forward, but Darcy stopped in her tracks.

"Wait," she said. When Loki did as she bade, his gaze questioning, she took his other hand in hers and pulled him to her. With her wedges on she didn't have to reach as far up to kiss him; she simply leaned in and touched her lips to his. Despite the desire that had been consuming both of them over the past few days, the embrace remained gentle and exploratory, her lips brushing against his lazily. "Mmm... That was nice," she purred.

"Very," he concurred. "Although I hope I'm not once again wearing your lipstick. It would be difficult to explain our way out of that a second time."

"Nope. It's kiss-proof." She smiled at him, wishing she could pause her life at this precise moment. It had been a long, long time since she'd been this happy with someone of the opposite sex. _I really have to call Jane_, she mused. _This totally deserves some BFF dishing_.

She couldn't freeze time, but she could do the next best thing. "Hold on," she said, rummaging through her bag for her iPhone. She pulled it out and showed it to Loki. "I want to have a picture of us with the castle in the background. Here," she handed him the phone. "Your arms are longer-you'll be able to take a better picture."

They squeezed together and shifted around until they could see one of the towers behind them. "Say broccoli," the young man said before taking the picture.

It was a great picture, Darcy decided; Loki was smiling and she was laughing (who says 'broccoli' for a picture, anyway?) and the tower was visible and... and it was perfect. "I love it," she said, showing it to him.

Loki looked at the picture, his expression contemplative. "I don't think I've looked that happy in a long time."

"Me neither. I think we're good for each other, if you ask me," the young woman said, placing her hand in the crook of his elbow.

They set off towards the city's entrance, a large doorway in the city walls. "And if you ask me," Loki playfully replied, "I'd say you're right."

When they passed through the old town's main gate, Darcy was spellbound. The crowds, the old buildings, the stores spilling out into narrow alleyways; if they hadn't been in France she would have called it Dickensian.

"It's charming," she said, craning her neck to look all around her. Loki had been right to suggest they return for a longer visit-there was so much to see!

"It is rather pretty, yeah? Some of the shops are a bit garish, but those often attract the most tourists."

The smell of baking hung in the air where the stores began in the alleyway in front of them, and Darcy stopped dead in her tracks at the sight of a sweets shop. "Oh. My. God." she exclaimed dramatically, nearly tugging Loki's arm off when she made a beeline for La Cure Gourmande. "I died, right? I mean, because this is heaven…"

"I knew we should have gone to get Mum's salt first," the young man muttered, amused nonetheless by Darcy's childish reaction. "If I buy you a cookie, will you behave?" he asked, joking.

"Hmm…" Darcy made a show of seriously considering his offer. Leaning in so that only he could hear her, she said "buy me a box and I'll leave a cookie crumb trail up my thighs..."

Loki stared at her dumbfounded; his eyes went out of focus for a moment and the young woman knew he was visualising her counteroffer. Finally, he snapped out of his stupour. "Chocolate or orange?"

Five minutes later the couple walked out of the sweets shop with their purchase, both thinking of imaginative and playful ways of eating their chocolate cookies.

It wasn't very difficult for Loki to find his mother's fleur de sel, since it seemed to be a standard item in nearly all boutiques. "I might as well pick her up some herbes de Provence, too," he said while they were browsing the small shop.

"What are herbes de Provence, anyway?" Darcy asked, looking the small glass container over.

"They're just assorted dried herbs. Mum uses them in her stews and roasts; they're actually very flavourful."

"Now you're just making me hungry," the young woman said, glancing at her watch. They still had fifteen minutes before they had to meet up with the group at the restaurant. "Do you know if there are any stores with kids' clothes in town? I'd really like to pick something up for my niece while I'm over here."

"You have a niece?" The conversation sidetracked the young man from the transaction for his purchase. "Désolé," he told the shopkeeper who was standing there offering him his change. "Merci."

They walked out the store and wandered hand in hand in with no particular direction in mind. "Yeah," Darcy said. "I'm an auntie; it's the best thing ever. My brother, who's three years younger than me, and his girlfriend had a baby when they were young-well, they're still young, but you know what I mean, like really young-and they decided to keep her." She pulled up an image of a toddler in a princess outfit on her iPhone and showed it to Loki. "Her name is Grace and she just turned four a few months ago; this was taken at her birthday party."

Loki looked at the picture and handed the phone back to her. "She's beautiful-she seems to have a mischievous twinkle in her eye, though. Must run in the family," he teased.

"You'd better believe it. That's why I said that being an aunt rocks. I can get away with all sorts of shit that you can't when you're a mom, like teaching her to make faces, eating ice cream in the living room with our feet on the coffee table. She's my little buddy."

When they rounded the corner, making their way back towards the centre of town, they noticed a few people from their group.

"Guess the bus has arrived," Darcy commented. "Maybe we should see if we can find Ani and Gustave."

It didn't take long before they'd spotted their two friends who were, along with many others, browsing the goods at the confectionery shoppe.

"Cave in… cave in _to_ _the gooey goodness_…" Darcy said as she approached Anika, who was perusing the selection of caramels.

"Oh, Darcy. I already have enough devils on my shoulder-I need to invest in a few angels to balance them out."

"Pshaw. Angels don't have nearly as much fun." She lifted the bag that held her box of chocolates and, making sure that neither Loki nor Gustave was within earshot, said "See? Chocolate cookies acquired through promises of sinful delight. Angels wouldn't play dirty like that."

Anika smiled and eyed the caramels. "Well, maybe just a few…"

"That's my girl. Now why don't you call your hubby and make a few sinful promises of your own?"

The other woman's smile faded slightly. "I can't. My husband died two years ago."

Darcy felt like she'd had the wind punched out of her. "Oh my god, Ani, I'm so sorry… I didn't know…"

Anika gently placed a hand on her friend's shoulder. "Don't feel bad, Darcy-you can't have known. He had leukemia. It was long and painful, and it was almost a relief when he passed away, to know he was no longer suffering."

"Still, I'm really sorry. You guys had your whole life ahead of you."

"We were childhood friends. I prefer to see it as we had our whole life behind us. And I'm only 32; I still have my life ahead of me." She looked around and then leaned in. "Speaking of which, what do you think of Gustave?"

* * *

At the restaurant Loki, Darcy, Anika and Gustave managed to squeeze together at a table together along with James, Shelley, Carmen and Ibrahim, who was from the office in Cairo. Ibrahim had the whole table in stitches with stories about the antics at his uncle's stall in one of Cairo's markets.

"Oh, he didn't!" Anika commented after the man had finished his latest tale.

"Oh, but he did. You must understand-the woman was _very_ large; he did not have any robes that would fit her!"

Still laughing, Loki added "but to offer to sell her his _tent_ as a robe, mate…"

"Well," Ibrahim conceded, "perhaps that was a little disrespectful."

The server came with their first course at that moment, and the group quieted down as they prepared to finally eat.

Darcy took a bite of her warm tomato salad and closed her eyes in delight. "Ok, I need the recipe for this. I've no idea what they put in the dressing but it's to die for." She looked at Loki's plate, eyeing the steak tartare uncertainly. "I still can't believe you're eating raw beef. Aren't you concerned about E. Coli or listeria?"

The young man finished his bite and wiped his mouth before replying "nope." He picked a small amount on his fork and offered it to her. "Why don't you try it for yourself? It's very tasty."

It was everything for Darcy not to act like a seven year-old and start making gagging noises. Instead, she just pulled back from the proffered fork and politely declined. "With my luck, I'd be the one to get sick."

James, who was enjoying a plate of foie gras despite the angry glares from Anika-"do you know what they do to those poor geese to get foie gras?!" she'd asked-spoke up. "Well, at least it's beef here. In some restaurants the steak tartare is actually raw horse meat."

"Oh, yuck…" By now the whole table was amused at Darcy's reactions, and Shelley made a point to remind the young American never to visit China. "You won't survive a walk through their markets, that's for sure," she laughed.

Darcy smiled and nodded. "Advice taken, Shelley. No trips to China for me." She and Loki sat at the far end of the table with their backs to a wall. The young woman had chosen the seats so she could observe all the other tables and see what people were up to. Loki, on the other hand, had altogether different ideas. Since they were all elbow to elbow at the small table, no one noticed when he reached under the table and placed his hand on her thigh, sliding her dress up so he could touch her bare skin.

The young woman felt her face flush and tried to hide it by taking a sip of her wine. Anika, however, was too perceptive.

"Darcy, are you alright?" she asked, concerned.

"I'm good," the young woman replied in a squeaky tone. "I think a piece of pepper went down the wrong way." She fought to keep still as Loki's hand went further up her thigh until his fingers were pressed up against the cotton of her underpants. She chanced a quick glance in his direction and saw that he was casually having a conversation with James, who was on his right side.

_Bastard_, she thought. _Two can play at this game_. She turned her attention to the conversation occurring on her side of the table; Carmen, Shelley and Anika were discussing shoes and Gustave was looking at them like they were speaking Swahili. "Gustave," she called, getting his attention. It was difficult to concentrate with Loki's fingers drawing lazy circles against the crotch of her underwear, but she managed to focus on her friend. "Loki tells me you have two children."

As she'd been told, Gustave was all too happy to talk about his kids. While the Frenchman was regaling her with tales of princess tea parties and junior football games, she reached down under the table and mimicked Loki's actions, drawing her fingers up his thighs, her nails scratching along the way. The only outward sign he showed was a slight jump, which he masked as a shift in sitting positions.

She was finally given respite when the server came to clear their table. She and Loki passed their plates along with the others, making it easy on the girl since everything was so crammed. Taking advantage of the pause, she quickly grabbed her iPhone and sent Loki a text. _Please stop-I'm going to embarrass myself._

She hit send, and almost immediately Loki's phone dinged. Frowning, he picked it up and read the message, and typed something back. Darcy saw that they had Anika's attention, so she didn't read his reply right away. Instead, she stood up and grabbed her bag, and excused herself. "I need to go find the ladies' room," she said as she squeezed by people on her way out.

When she was in the privacy of the toilet, she pulled her phone out and read Loki's reply. _ Sorry, I'll be a good boy. I promise_. She smiled and sent him _I just need you to be a good boy for now-it'll be a different story tonight._

When she left the bathroom, Anika was standing outside the door. "Are you ok, Darcy? You're acting oddly."

Darcy laughed and took a quick peek to make sure they were alone. "Yes, I'm good," she replied sotto voce. "Loki was keeping his hands busy under the table, if you catch my meaning."

Ani frowned for a second, then her eyes widened. "Oh! No wonder you needed a sip of wine," she said.

"Hell, if he kept at it I would have needed the whole bottle. _And_ given the whole table quite a show. Luckily the server came by just in time."

"Or else _you'd_ have come just in time," the other woman said, sniggering.

"Ani!" Darcy chastised, smacking her friend playfully on the arm. "You are so bad, you know that?"

They walked back to the table together, still whispering. "Obviously not bad enough that I wasn't the first one to think of table games. I wonder what Gustave would do if I tried something like that?"

Darcy pondered the question, then shook her head. "For all his swagger, I still think he'd choke on his wine. Best not to try that when the whole group is present."

"That sounds reasonable. See? You actually can be the angel on my shoulder sometimes."

When they'd returned to the table, dinner service had begun. Neither Darcy nor Anika had been able to decide on what to have, so they each chose something they'd both wanted to try with the intention of splitting the meals. Darcy's Coq au vin and Anika's Tourte aux taureau et champignons arrived at the same time, and the girls set to the task of divvying up the food.

Although Darcy had been disappointed at first to see that she, Loki, Anika and Gustave couldn't have a table to themselves, by the end of dinner she was thankful that James, Shelley, Carmen and Ibrahim had joined them. They'd all swapped stories about working in their particular markets and had discovered that, although the countries were so different one from another, they all faced the same headaches and the same challenges. Ibrahim had been asked to share more stories over dessert, and-maybe it was because there were a few more empty bottles of wine at the table-everyone thought he'd saved the best for last. Even people sitting at nearby tables had stopped talking so they could hear what the laughter was all about.

At the end of the evening, when everyone had left the restaurant to either return to the bus or their cars, the four friends gathered around the Mercedes for a brief tête à tête of the evening's other activity.

Gustave looked at his watch. "By the time we return to the hotel, it will be around 9:30." He looked at Anika and Darcy. "Do you need some time to freshen up before we leave for the discotheque?"

The girls looked at each other, communicating silently, then turned their gazes back to Gustave, shaking their heads. "Like I was telling Loki," Darcy commented, "I've gone to raves in platform shoes. I'm good to go."

"Good," the man said. "We'll meet in the hotel lobby. Come, Anika, before the bus leaves without us." He held out his hand, which she accepted, and they hurried off towards their ride.

Loki watched them jog away, his head tilted to the side. "Did they just run off holding hands?" he asked, confused.

"Yup," Darcy replied, walking over to her side of the car and opening her door. "They're... exploring opportunities, I think you could call it."

"But didn't you say Anika was married?" he asked as they both got into the vehicle.

"She'd mentioned missing her hubby when I first met her, so I assumed she was married. Ends up he passed away from leukemia a couple of years ago. Personally, I think they're cute together."

"Yes, but what about when she goes back to South Africa? What then?" Loki started the car and slowly pulled out of the parking lot, paying the toll on the way out.

"Then they figure it out, that's what. I don't think either of them are in a rush to head back into a serious relationship just yet. Heck, they haven't even kissed yet, from what she says." Darcy looked behind them, at the castle which was beautifully lit.

The ride back to the hotel was quiet, with the couple lost in thought. Darcy was thinking of what Loki had said about their friends, and how that might apply to her. She didn't even know where he lived; were they also gearing up for a long-distance relationship?

"Where is it that you live, anyway," she asked, unable to shake the feeling that they might be facing the same dilemma as Anika and Gustave.

"I own a loft in SoHo," he replied quickly, as though his own thoughts were on the same track as hers. "And you?"

"Jane and I rent a duplex in Washington Heights."

"Washington Heights? That's not a very safe neighbourhood, is it?" He cast her a quick worried glance.

"Don't worry," Darcy reassured him. "We're in a good neighbourhood-we're on the top floor and our super, who lives on the main floor, is amazing. There are lots of restaurants and businesses around us, so it's a bit more upscale than some of the other areas of the neighbourhood. And let's change the focus on you; how did you land a loft in frickin' SoHo?!"

"My mother was the single child of very wealthy parents. When my grandmother died about seven years ago, her estate was split between Thor and myself with the caveat being that it had to be used responsibly. Mother agreed that the loft was a good investment, especially since I don't plan on moving anytime soon."

"Didn't your mother want any of the money?" Darcy spotted the turn that would bring them onto the small city's main artery and her heart sank a little. Although she was eager to join back up with her friends for the Daft Punk show, she was also very much enjoying the quiet conversation with Loki.

"Not particularly, no. My father also comes from old money so we've always lived rather comfortably."

The young woman chuckled. "Well, that explains the expensive suits and the car snobbery."

Not catching onto the fact that she was ribbing him, Loki pulled into a parking spot and turned to face her. "Does that bother you?" he asked, seriously.

"I was just teasing you," Darcy said, reaching out to take one of his hands in hers. "I come from a middle class family that was very comfortable. We always had the latest fad in clothes, we took the occasional trip to Disneyland-we never wanted for anything. I don't have any hang-ups where money is concerned."

Loki's gaze was intense, his blue eyes searching hers. He slowly leaned in towards her and placed his lips against hers. The embrace quickly intensified, the pent-up tension of the past few days bubbling just below the surface. Darcy moaned and reached down to trace the outline of his erection pressing against the fabric of his pants. She attempted to move closer to him but found herself restrained, somehow. "Fuck…" she muttered, feeling behind her for the seatbelt release.

Finally free, she shimmied over to Loki's side and straddled him, pressing herself against him to the same rhythm as the languid kisses they were sharing. She pulled back and whispered against his lips "I want you so much right now."

Loki opened his mouth to reply, but a sharp rap on the window interrupted him. They both looked to see who it was, but the window was completely fogged up.

"Please don't let that be anyone other than Gustave or Ani," Darcy whimpered, resting her head in the crook of his shoulder..

"Come on," said an accented voice from outside. "I thought you were going to see a show, not give one."

The couple both broke out into relieved smiles. "Anika," they said in unison.

"This continues tonight," Loki said, dead serious. "I can't take this anymore, Darcy."

"I know. We'll cut out early and go back to my room and fuck like teenagers. Deal?"

"No. We'll cut out early and go back to your room and fuck like adults with vast experience and imaginations. Now hop back into your own seat unless you want to give Gustave an eyeful."

Darcy nodded and climbed back into her own seat, straightening her dress as much as possible in the confined space. She opened the door and stood up. "Sorry," she said sheepishly.

Anika laughed. "I don't think I'm the one you need to apologise to-your man looks a bit ruffled, Darcy."

Loki walked over to where the women stood and wrapped an arm around Darcy's shoulders, kissing the top of her head. "Good things are worth waiting for," he said.

Gustave joined them, taking Anika's hand in his. "Friends, we need to move. Daft Punk awaits us!"

* * *

**A/N: Poor Loki and Darcy! When will they ever get the chance to cave in to their desires?! You'll have to come back next week to find out! Also, please feed the author! Scooby snacks (ie. comments) go in the feedback box :)**


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: Hello again! I hope everyone is surviving the wacky weather that seems to have gripped many places across the globe. Personally, I can't wait for spring :) **

**I should also add that, unfortunately, the Daft Punk concert is all part of my imagination-I only wish I could have attended one of their concerts on top of everything else in France!**

**And last but not least, this chapter is where we really fall in the "M" classification-be ye warned!**

* * *

9.

When they arrived at the discotheque a few hundred people were already lined up.

"I thought you said the first two hundred to reply got passes," Darcy said, rubbing her bare arms from the chill of the night. At this rate it would take them at least an hour just to get in.

"Yes, but we are all allowed to bring guests-two hundred can easily become eight hundred or more if everyone brings 3 friends like me."

"Oh." She hadn't thought of that. "In that case I guess we're lucky to be among the first here."

Anika chuckled. "Glass half full kind of person, then?"

"Yup! Otherwise I'd spend my time moping and being useless. There are already enough people around like that." A stiff breeze had picked up since the sun had set and Darcy was seriously reconsidering her decision to wear her dress. She rubbed her arms some more and made a mental note to pick up a stole the next time she was out shopping with Jane.

"Here, put this on." Loki said, helping her into his suit jacket. He looked upwards; the sky, which had been clear when they were at the restaurant, was now overcast. "I've a feeling this cool wind is a precursor to a storm."

Anika huddled closer to Gustave, who seemed all too happy to share his warmth with her. "Well, let's hope that any rain holds out until we're inside."

They all agreed with her and fell silent for a moment.

Darcy broke the silence. "If we're going to be here for a long time, we might as well find something to talk about. Anyone have any crazy concert stories to share?"

Loki and Gustave reacted at the exact same time, albeit very differently. The latter, lips stretched into a wide grin, opened his mouth to speak but was interrupted by Loki.

"No." He shot the man a look of warning. "Not _that_."

"But Loki," the man laughed. "That was eight years ago. Surely enough time has passed that you are able to laugh about it."

Darcy did a double take because, despite the poor lighting, it looked like Loki was... _blushing_?

"Not in _eighty_ years will I be able to laugh at that, Gustave."

Anika looked from one man to the other, amused. "Is it really that bad?" she asked.

"No." "_Yes_."

There was a pregnant pause before Loki caved in. "Fine, damn it. However, let _me_ tell the story."

With a flourish not often seen since the seventeenth century, Gustave bowed deeply from the waist, waving his hand as if tipping a hat. "Bien sûr. Allez-y, mon ami."

"Mon ami, my arse," the Brit muttered under his breath. "Somehow, Gustave managed to convince me to attend a Rammstein concert with him back in 2005 when they were playing a concert in Lille, France."

"It was with the promise of meeting women," the Frenchman interjected, winking at Anika and Darcy.

Loki didn't correct Gustave. "I was 25 and single. It was as good a reason as any to agree to accompany him," he shrugged. "When we arrived and I saw the absolute _menagerie_ of freaks that had assembled to attend the concert, I was ready to leave. However, my ticket had cost me nearly two hundred fucking quid, so I wasn't prepared just yet to call it a loss."

Far off in the distance a rumble could be heard. Darcy really hoped they'd make it inside before the rain started or else they'd be risking pneumonia.

"We finally made it inside and found our seats..."

Anika interrupted him. "Wait. You had seats to see Rammstein?!"

"Ani, chère, does Loki look like the 'mosh pit' type to you?" Gustave asked her.

"Point taken," the South African conceded.

"If you two are done making fun of me, I would like to get this over with."

The couple motioned for him to continue and he gave them an exaggerated roll of the eyes. "As I was saying, we found our seats, and Gustave got up to go buy us a pint-it was the least he could do for having dragged me there with him. While he was gone, two girls arrived and occupied the seats next to ours. One was pretty, but the other was a knockout-tall, thin, had all the right curves and was beautiful. I figured their boyfriends would be joining them, but when the opening act started and the seats next to theirs filled up, I saw my opportunity. I struck up a conversation with the knockout, who was sitting beside me. By the time Rammstein was on stage, Lily and I had found ourselves a dark nook somewhere and were getting very well acquainted."

Loki's voice had gotten quieter as his story progressed, and Darcy and the others found themselves leaning forward in order to hear him. "She had her hand down my pants while we were kissing, so I figured I would be a gentleman and return the favour. I reached up under the hem of her skirt and..."

"Oh, no!" Darcy and Anika both slapped their hands to their mouths at the exact same moment, realising where the man's story was leading.

"Oh, yes," he replied, face pale. "Lily wasn't a woman. I remember rushing back to our seats, grabbing Gustave and getting the fuck out of the arena as fast as humanly possible. What I don't remember, however, is how many shots it took to get me so pissed that I nearly had to have my stomach pumped."

Gustave was the one to look serious at that moment. "I have never been so frightened for the safety of a friend before," he stated soberly.

"Wow," Darcy finally commented. "That beats my story of being dragged to the New Kids On The Block reunion tour by Jane, my best friend."

Anika grimaced. "I would have required innumerable shots to forget that one," she said, shuddering dramatically.

They heard cheering coming from the front of the line and Loki, the tallest among them, stretched to see what was happening. "They've opened the doors," he announced to everyone's relief. "We should start moving soon, hopefully."

* * *

The lineup was handled more efficiently than at any concert Darcy had been to, which was saying quite a bit especially since this seemed to be an impromptu get-together with a select few hundred fans. All told, they made it indoors in less than a half hour, which was impressive.

Inside, the crowd swarmed the bar. The two couples miraculously managed to land a table to occupy until the DJ duo hit the stage. "Would you girls like anything to drink?" Loki asked as he and Gustave prepared to join the throng.

Instead of discouraging the two girls from drinking, Loki's story had given them a few ideas. "Bring a few rounds of kamikazes," Darcy said, returning his jacket to him. It might have been chilly outside, but in the packed hall it was already warm.

Loki frowned, "You're not planning on getting drunk tonight, are you? Because I'd rather not have to carry you back to the hotel over my shoulder if I can avoid it."

"Not really," Anika answered. "We're going to get buzzed right at the start, then work it off by dancing and drinking lots of water."

He looked at her skeptically, but did as she asked anyway. He and Gustave left in the direction of the bar and the two women slid their chairs closer together.

"I still can't believe Loki's story," Anika said, laughing. "Poor him; that was almost enough to drive a man to celibacy!"

"You realise it's going to take every ounce of maturity I have not to tease him about it, right?" Darcy added. Then she remembered what she and Loki had agreed to in the car. "Loki and I are going to cut out around midnight. I think all this teasing has him close to a mental breakdown. If we don't get horizontal soon I'm afraid he might just take me in the middle of a seminar tomorrow."

Anika laughed. "I would pay to see the look on Jim Nelson's face!"

"Ha ha, Ani," the American replied deadpan. "It's good to see I have friends I can rely on in times of crisis."

They spent the next twenty minutes discussing the complications of long-distant relationships, with which neither of them had any experience. By the time the guys returned with the drinks, both women needed their first shooters to shake off their doldrums.

"Bottoms up!" Anika called out as she, Darcy and Gustave clinked their shot glasses together and downed the drinks in one gulp.

Darcy coughed and shook her head. "Man, I haven't done that in a few years." She eyed her second shot glass warily, thinking that Loki may have done her a favour by only bringing two of them.

The Brit had ordered himself a tall glass of something dark and foamy. Curious, Darcy asked him what it was.

"It's Guinness," he replied, taking a drink. He held the glass, tilting it slightly in her direction. "Would you like a sip?"

"Sure," she replied, accepting the proffered glass. Bringing it up to her nose, she inhaled. It smelled like really strong beer, and although she didn't really like beer she decided to try it anyway.

Loki laughed at the face she made and took the glass back from her. "Not your thing, I take it?"

"Ugh, no. Blech!" Darcy grabbed the closest drink to her-her second shooter-and downed it in an effort to cleanse her palate of the Guinness. The only thing she managed to do was to make the room spin. Yes, it had been a long time since she'd done shooters.

Anika and Gustave both laughed. "Darcy's setting a tough pace," the other woman said, picking up her own drink and making it disappear. She slammed the heavy glass back down on the table and smiled. "Novice," she teased her friend, winking.

"Fine, I'm a lightweight, I'll be the first to admit it." Darcy looked around the table, searching for something. "Water. Did you guys pick up any water?" There was no way she was going to survive a few hours of dancing without hydration.

"Oh, yeah." Loki pulled a bottle of water from each of his coat pockets. "Here," he said, passing one along to the young woman.

"Thanks," she said, taking a long drink. "I'm going to need this."

Surprisingly, the concert started right on time. It was more of a surprise to Darcy, though, that they'd pulled out all the stops and were giving the small crowd the same calibre mind-blowing light show they would have played for a much larger crowd.

She and Anika wended their way through the thick crowd, making it as close to the front of the large room as they could. They moved to the music, cheering along with the rest of the audience. As the adrenaline of the moment hit, Darcy realised that she'd really needed a night out like this-an excuse to just let go and have fun.

And she was finding out that Anika appeared to have been in need of some escape as well. When the two men caught up with them a short while later, the South African sauntered over to Gustave, her body moving to the rhythm. She gripped his tie and pulled him closer to her, and wrapped her arms loosely around his neck. Pressed against him, she swayed her hips to the beat of 'Lose Yourself to Dance'; the man surprised her by following suit and matching her movements just as sensually.

"Wow," Darcy hollered into Loki's ear. "Gustave's a great dancer."

Loki nodded and leaned in closer to her so she could hear him. "Yes. He always puts the rest of us blokes to shame."

The American laughed and shook her head, rolling her eyes, in a 'silly boy' way. She crooked her finger, inviting him to join her to dance as well. He surprised her by agreeing-she really had expected him to refuse-and even more so by being as good a dancer as Gustave.

Unlike Anika and Gustave, the two kept a respectable distance while dancing. They both knew that allowing themselves to share such intimate contact would almost certainly lead to a regrettable scene (and possibly a visit by the local gendarmes).

All around them, people danced and enjoyed the concert's visual elements. The team of DJs played through many of their most popular songs as well as a fair number of less well-known fan favourites. When they began to play 'Harder Better Faster Stronger', Loki pulled Darcy into a passionate embrace.

"I've had enough of watching your body move without being able to touch you like I want to," he growled in her ear.

Darcy bit her lip and nodded, waving to get Anika's attention. She pointed to herself and Loki, and then to the door.

The other woman didn't need any more of an explanation than that. She nodded and gave them a thumbs up before leaning in to whisper something into Gustave's ear. Not for the first time Darcy was jealous of the South African's height; she didn't have to wear egregiously high heels in order to kiss Gustave. (Which she'd finally done. Many, many times.)

The chill of the night, as well as the change in decibel levels, disoriented Darcy when she stepped out from the discotheque. Distracted, she stumbled on a small step but caught herself easily enough.

"Holy shit it's cold out here," she commented, grateful for Loki's suit jacket. The breeze was still up, and the skirt of her dress flapped in the wind; if it hadn't been for the weight of the jacket around her hips she may have given passers-by a Marilyn Monroe-esque peep show.

At this hour there was even less traffic than usual (which meant no traffic at all), so the two managed to cross the street easily. As they approached the hotel they saw a flash of light from behind the building, followed by a loud rumble. Moments later a few drops began to fall from the sky.

"I suggest we increase our pace to a jog unless you want to get soaked," Loki said as they reached the far end of the parking lot.

"I can dance in heels but I'm not sure about jogging!" Darcy called out to him, trying to keep up. The raindrops came down faster and in greater numbers until the skies opened up and all hell broke loose.

They reached the hotel's awning a few moments too late to make it just in time. Loki had been faster, reaching their goal ten steps ahead of Darcy. They stood there, trying to catch their breath and laughing at the same time.

Darcy's lungs burned. She was more into hot yoga than running and the burst of energy, especially after two hours of dancing, had her doubled over.

"You alright?" Loki asked, a little concerned. His breathing already sounded like it had returned to normal.

"Yeah," she lied, still panting. "Let me guess-you're a runner, right?" _That's it, Darce, keep stalling through conversation_.

"I was, for a while, but I've gone off track over the past couple of months." He realised his words and chuckled. "No pun intended."

Darcy finally straightened up; it helped that breathing didn't feel like someone was rubbing her lungs with sandpaper and pouring lemon juice on them. She looked at him and saw how the rain had plastered his white shirt to his torso, accentuating his well-defined chest.

She also noticed how he seemed to be shivering.

"Come on." She held out her hand. "You're soaked right through; we need to dry off before we get sick."

He accepted her hand and they walked through the lobby to the elevator. "Geez," the young woman said, her teeth chattering, "you think they could crank the A/C any higher? Just a few more degrees cooler and we'll need to measure the temperature in Kelvins."

Loki kept a steady eye on the elevator as if he could draw it closer with sheer will. "I'd offer to help you warm up, but I'm afraid I would just end up making things worse." He pulled the damp material of his shirt away from his chest. "This is beyond uncomfortable," he commented, making a face.

When the elevator finally graced them with its presence, they were relieved to be sheltered within the confined space. Loki took advantage of the moment of privacy to remove his shirt; he declined the offer of his jacket back, pointing out that it was just as wet as his shirt.

They reached the seventh floor and Darcy poked her head out of the elevator to make sure the coast was clear. "We're good," she said quietly, leading them back to her room.

Once inside, the first thing Darcy did was shut off the air conditioning which seemed to have been set at the same temperature than the one in the lobby. "I really don't think we'll be needing this," she said, a small smile playing on her lips. She kicked off her shoes and turned to see Loki standing at the window, watching the storm roll out across the water.

With the lights still off he cast a lean silhouette against the glass wall, illuminated every so often by a blue-white flash of lightning.

Although she felt drawn to him-_hello Light, I am Moth_-there was a more pressing need of drying off. In the bathroom she grabbed an armful of towels and brought them back out into the room. "Here," she said, offering one to Loki. "Dry yourself off before you catch a cold; I don't know why the A/C was set so cold in here tonight."

The young man accepted the proffered towel but, instead of using it, placed it back on the bed. He reached over and removed his jacket from Darcy, carefully sliding it off her shoulders.

"I'm sorry," she said apologetically. "You're probably going to have to get it dry cleaned after having it soaked like that; it'll probably cost a fortune…"

He surprised her by dropping it to the floor carelessly. "Silly girl," he admonished. "I don't care about the jacket." He slid a hand over her shoulder; it felt warm against her cold skin and she leaned into the caress. "You're the one who should worry about catching cold, darling."

"Maybe we should get me out of these wet clothes, then, before I get sick." She bit her lip, suddenly self-conscious about being so forward. Where was all the confidence that had pushed her to launch herself at him in an elevator, or to straddle him in a car, or to engage in role play that culminated in mutual masturbation?

Loki smiled and took her hand in his, pulling her away from the bed. He took a few steps until he stood behind her, sweeping her hair to the side over her shoulder; carefully, he began to lower the zipper at the back of her dress.

Outside the storm gathered strength. Darcy was, for once, glad to be on terra firma as the lightning allowed her to see flashes of boats rolling over the waves that reached the marina; from the seventh floor of the hotel they looked as insignificant as toys in a bathtub. A particularly loud clap of thunder made her jump, causing her to bump back into Loki.

He leaned down and turned the lamp above the night table on. The light cast a warm glow over the bed, its white duvet soft and inviting. "Is it the storm that's causing your jitters, or is it what we're doing?"

Three days. They'd known each other for three days and he could already read her. "A bit of both," she admitted breathlessly, closing her eyes and letting her head drop forward as he pressed warm open-mouthed kisses along her spine. With a bit of a shimmy, her dress came off and pooled at her feet.

When she turned around, she stood facing Loki in nothing but her underwear, while he was still fully dressed from the waist down. _No_, she thought, _that won't do_. She brought her gaze up to his and, biting her lip, reached for his belt.

He leaned in and touched his lips to hers. The kiss quickly caught fire and she found herself tugging at his pants desperately, having apparently lost all coordination. "Fuck," she grumbled, pulling back to look at his pants to see why they weren't coming off.

"That's what we're aiming to do," he said, helping her out with the second button she'd missed. Soon enough he'd kicked his shoes off and his pants joined her dress in a heap on the floor.

They tumbled onto the bed in a tangle of limbs, with Loki covering Darcy. His mouth travelled the line of her jaw, down the slender column of her neck, alighting at her collarbone. All along the way, his lips worshipped her with terms of endearment, whispered in the quiet of the room.

It was so very difficult to concentrate with his mouth doing such wonderful, sinful things to her. Darcy pushed through a fog of lust, forcing herself to reach down for his underwear-after all, they did have a greater purpose than foreplay this time. Her fingers skimmed down his back, the light scratch of her fingernails eliciting a groan from her partner.

She reached the waistband of his underpants at the same time as he turned his attention to her breasts. All lucid thought nearly fled when his mouth latched onto one of her nipples, his tongue teasing the sensitive peak. Her hands paused, itching to run through his hair, to keep his head pressed to her chest, but the desire to have Loki inside her, to finally share that moment with him, won out.

Her hands pushed his underwear down as far as her arms could reach. When her feet came up to pull them off the rest of the way down his legs, the young man paused in his ministrations and cocked an eyebrow.

"Yoga," she said smugly. "I knew it would eventually come in handy during sex."

Smirking, Loki kicked the garment aside. "We'll have to revisit that particular talent of yours later on," he said, sitting back on his heels. His eyes landed on her underwear, a familiar pair of red and white panties with 'Sweet Like Candy' printed on them, and he raised an eyebrow.

Her response was to shrug playfully. "I thought you might appreciate them. You seemed so curious and all the other night…" Unable to resist, she reached out and took his cock in her hand, squeezing, catching some of the clear liquid that escaped from the tip and using it to slide her hand back up to the base.

"_Darcy_…" He closed his eyes and slowly took a shaky breath, before covering her hand with his. "If you continue, I'm going to embarrass myself."

"Sorry," she lied, pulling her hand away. Stretching, she placed her hands above her head, crossed at the wrist as if they were tied up. "How's this?"

"You _will_ be the death of me, you naughty girl," he replied before turning his attention back to her underwear. Leaning down, he pressed his lips to her panties, inhaling deeply and moaning in delight. Darcy's breath caught in her throat and she tilted her pelvis, pressing up against him. Unlike Loki, she had no qualms about embarrassing herself, especially if it meant having his tongue where she needed it. It had been a long, long time since a man had been selfless enough to look after her needs first.

The young man scooted further down the bed until there was enough space for him to slide the cotton garment off, and he added them as a final layer to the pile of discarded garments. With a sinuous grace, he slid back between her legs, his blue eyes locked on hers.

Darcy bent her legs to give him better access, dropping her head back at the first swipe of his tongue. "Oh God, Loki," she moaned. She'd really, _really_, missed oral sex. Her hands flew to his head, fingers tangling in his hair, careful not to pull too hard. Her breaths came in short, deep, gasps as his tongue traced her wet folds over and over again, wandering over every now and then to her clit.

Her orgasm blindsided her, as if coming from nowhere; there had been no gradual building up, no slow climb-she'd simply gone from zero to sixty with no warning. Her back arched off the bed, her fingers flexing in the duvet which had fallen around her; at least she'd had the presence of mind to remain as quiet as possible, her lips parted in a silent gasp.

When she finally tumbled back down to Earth, lying on top of the bedspread, a sheen of sweat covering her skin, she opened her eyes. Loki was positioned above her, his gaze nearly black with lust, his own breathing laboured. "Darcy..." he whispered, his voice rough with need.

The young woman opened herself up to him and he settled between her thighs, sliding inside her slowly. His eyes met hers and they held such a look of wonder, as if the moment was as much a revelation of something bigger to him as it was to her. His tongue darted out, tracing his lips, and Darcy knew he was going to say something that would make her fall for him even harder than she already had. She reached up and pressed her lips to his desperately to prevent him from speaking. The speed with which their relationship was developing already made her feel like she was tumbling down Alice's rabbit hole; she didn't need to feel even less in control than she currently did.

He kissed her back frantically, the embrace needy and messy. She could taste herself on him and it only made her want him more. His lips ghosted across her jaw to her ear, where he whispered thoughts altogether different from what he seemed to be thinking when he'd entered her. "You're so tight and wet," he grunted as he increased his pace. "I could fuck you all night."

Surprised, Darcy's breath caught at his vulgar confessions. Instead of being repulsed by the language as she would have been in any other circumstance, however, she felt aroused (well, even more than she already was). Planting her feet flat on the mattress, she began to meet his thrusts enthusiastically, sharing her own dirty thoughts. "You feel so good inside me," she purred, flexing her internal muscles and relishing in the groan he let out. "I love it when you fuck me hard, when I can feel you so deep inside me."

Unlike with her first orgasm Darcy felt her second one building, like a progression of waves, each one lapping further up her shore. At the moment when her climax hit her, she felt Loki stiffen and find his release as well.

They lay there, sprawled over the blankets, still intimately joined, until their breathing returned to normal.

"Well," Darcy panted, her heart still hammering, "that was good timing."

Loki chuckled as he slipped out and off of her, kissing her on the temple. "Darling, we're just that good together." He surveyed the mess they'd made and stood up on shaky legs. "I'd forgotten how sticky this is without rubbers; I'll fetch the tissues."

The young woman nodded, unable and unwilling to move. Her head was spinning from all the excitement and emotions stirred by what she'd just shared with Loki. They hadn't fucked. Hell, they hadn't even had sex. She had just made _love_ to a man she'd known for three days and the scariest part was, well, that it didn't scare her.

When he returned, Loki paused, obviously catching on to her contemplative mood. He held the tissues out for her, his own features becoming drawn. "Is everything ok?" he asked quietly.

Darcy accepted the box and smiled. "Yes," she replied, cleaning herself up. "Let's get under the covers; I'm getting cold." This seemed to put him more at ease, although he still appeared wary-did he expect her to tell him she regretted what they'd shared?

He turned the light off and they both climbed under the warm duvet. Darcy snuggled into him, draping a leg over his thighs and placing her head on his pillow. In the dark, she couldn't see his expression, but she had an inkling he was still worried. "I don't regret it, if that's what you think," she offered. "It was beautiful, and amazing, and there isn't even a 'however'. I want to make love to you every night if I can."

When she felt him relax, she continued. "It's just that I'm still stuck on what we discussed last night, when we talked about how fast we're moving and how scary it is that neither of us are concerned about it. I'm trusting my gut, but my brain is putting up a hell of a fight."

Loki leaned forward and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. "I'm glad there aren't any regrets on your part. And I agree that we'll likely have to broach the topic of how to carry on what we've started when we're back home. For now, though," he was interrupted by a yawn, "we need to sleep."

Darcy kissed the tip of his nose and turned over to her other side, spooning back against him. "Good night, Loki." Her heart skipped a beat, though, when he replied "good night, Love," before his breathing evened out.

She really needed to talk to Jane.

* * *

**A/N: Please take a few moments to review-it would help warm me during these -35C temperatures!**


	10. Chapter 10

**A/N: This week's update is a day early since I'm not sure if I'll have time to update tomorrow. I am counting down the minutes to Thursday, when I will go watch a live airing of Tom Hiddleston as Coriolanus at my local theatre-clear across the pond! Tom Hiddleston and Shakespeare-doesn't get much better than that!**

**And here we go-Darcy finally calls Jane for some much-needed girl time...**

* * *

10.

Darcy waited fifteen minutes before getting up to call Jane. Reluctantly extracting herself from Loki's grasp-they were still spooning, with his arm holding her tight against him-she slipped out of bed and rooted around in the dark for her pyjamas.

While she dressed, she turned to look at her lover's sleeping form. He had turned over onto his back, one arm bent and resting on his chest, the other stretched straight out as if he were pointing to the wall.

_Oh yeah_, she remembered, amused,_ I'm gonna need my cardigan_. Even in sleep he was ever being useful.

As quietly as possible she pushed the sliding closet door open and reached in for the sweater. She put it on, tying it tightly around her waist, and walked over to the patio door, grabbing her iPhone off the desk on her way by.

Outside, it had gotten much cooler. The wind was still strong and the boats bobbed up and down on the black waves. Darcy dragged a chair further back from the railing-quite the opposite to what she did during the day when the sun was warm and toasty-and plunked down into the moulded plastic seat, dialling Jane's number on Facetime.

The young woman shivered as she waited for her best friend to answer. "Come on, Jane," she muttered, "pick up already. It's freezing out here…"

Finally, Jane answered, sounding out of breath. "Darcy! Oh my God, how are you? Where have you been? You haven't answered any of my emails!"

Darcy felt a pang of guilt at her friend's concern. "I'm sorry, Jane. Things here are mental; I know I should have sent you a quick text, though."

"Well, I'm glad you're alright. What time is it there, anyway?" She craned her neck, turning to look at something behind her. "It's just after 9pm over here."

"It's just after 2am."

Jane frowned. "Shouldn't you be sleeping?" She squinted and looked closer at the screen of her iPad. Darcy could only imagine how silly she must have looked bent over the small piece of technology, her nose practically squished against it. There was no doubt the astrophysicist was brilliant, but sometimes she could be such an old lady.

"Yeah, well, I wanted to chat. Cause, you know, that's what friends do, right?" She hadn't realised to what extent she'd needed to hear her best friend's voice. Jane was always there for her, always willing to lend an ear, or a shoulder, or some sound advice. For someone whose love life stunk, she had some pretty good insights into other people's relationships.

Jane's face softened and she straightened up. "You've got those little worry lines between your eyebrows." She pointed at her own face, trying her best to mimic what she meant. "Those aren't good. This is going to be a serious chat, isn't it?"

"Jane, you're my best friend for a reason." Although the wind was uncomfortably cold, Darcy let out a breath and felt her shoulders relax a bit. "I really need your ability to see things clearly right now."

"Okay," the other woman said, walking away from where she'd been standing. "Let me get to my office. It's still pretty busy here despite the late hour." After a brief moment Darcy heard a soft 'click' followed by some shuffling as Jane sat at her desk. "So. What's up?"

Jane was an individual whose life was guided by logic so it made sense to start at the beginning. "I've met someone," Darcy announced.

"Oh?" The open-ended question was a tactic Jane had perfected over her years of being Darcy's personal psychiatrist; it always worked like a charm, encouraging Darcy to continue without leading the conversation in any particular direction.

"Yeah. Remember my Facebook post about the cute guy on the plane?" By now, it felt like she'd written that post weeks, if not months, ago.

Jane gave her an apologetic look. "Darcy, I haven't had a chance to check Facebook in weeks."

_Should have known_, Darcy thought to herself, amused. "Fine, Miss 'Too Busy', here's the scoop: I met a guy on the plane to France. He was in the seat beside me and we hit it off. He was good looking, funny, and dressed in a suit worth more money than a couple months' worth of our rent. The kicker, Jane," she added with emphasis, "is that he works for Globalcomm so we're at the conference together-he's a regional manager in Innovations. And he's as attracted to me as I am to him."

The other woman's lips pressed together before she spoke up. "I'm guessing there's a 'but' coming up?"

"That's the thing," Darcy said, her voice rising in panic before she caught herself. "There_ isn't_ a 'but'. Three days. Three days and if he asked me to marry him I'd say yes." She threw a desperate glance at her best friend. "Tell me I'm nuts."

Jane took in a deep breath and let it out slowly. "Wow. I… _wow_. Darcy, I don't know what to say. I mean, this isn't like you. I've never met anyone who enters a new relationship as cautiously as you do."

"That's exactly what I mean! We had sex tonight and it was everything for us to wait this long. And it wasn't just sex; it was…" She paused, her emotions getting the best of her. Sniffling, she wiped at a few tears with the back of her hand. "We made love, Jane. It was slow, and gentle, and I felt like I saw his fucking soul it was so beautiful."

"Ok. Time to take a step back and look at this logically. Tell me more about him."

Relieved at the switch in gears-the last thing she needed was to become hysterical and wake Loki up-Darcy nodded. "His name is Loki-I know, it's a weird name, his parents were mythology buffs or something-he's in his early thirties, he's British, he's hot, he's tall; I mean, I had my new wedges on and I barely came up to his chin. He's hot, he's smart, he's funny, he's got manners coming out the wazoo, have I mentioned he's hot?"

The other woman chuckled. "Yeah, I think you might have slipped that in there, somewhere." She looked at Darcy with tenderness and a bit of sadness. "Let's just say for a moment that what you guys have is the real thing. What are your plans for after the conference? Have you discussed that?"

"No, not really." Damn it, she knew Jane would ask that. Hell, she'd been thinking about it ever since she found out they were flying back home separately. Would they simply go their own ways and never see each other again? "Although it isn't the elephant in the room yet, it's going to be soon enough."

"It would make sense to discuss it before you leave. Where does he live, anyway? You said he's British, right?"

"Yes, he's British, but he's living in New York. He owns a loft in SoHo."

Jane had the exact reaction Darcy had expected, which was why she'd waited until _after_ she'd finished her sip of coffee to mention the loft. No one needs to be wiping coffee from an iPad. "Darcy! He owns a loft in SoHo?! What is he, the president of Globalcomm?"

Darcy chuckled. "No, he's not the president of Globalcomm-I already said he's a regional manager. Loki inherited some money from his rich grandmother and used it to buy the loft."

She was about to redirect the conversation to Loki's brother when she heard the patio door open behind her. Loki, clad only in his underwear, came out carrying a duvet.

"Darling, you're going to catch cold out here," he admonished before draping the cover over her.

It was still warm from where he'd been sleeping on it, and she looked at him, momentarily distracted from her phone conversation. "But what about you? Won't you be cold?"

He gave her a dazzling smile. "More the reason to come back and keep me warm," he said with a honeyed voice before leaning down and giving her the kind of kiss that made her think of all sorts of reasons why she wanted to go and help keep him warm. When he was done, he turned to the iPhone and nodded in greeting at Jane. "My apologies for the interruption," he said.

Jane simply looked at him, her mouth agape. It took her a few moments to reply a dazed "no problem", after which Loki returned to the room, closing the door behind him.

"See?!" Darcy said. "This is what I've been dealing with."

"Oh my," the other woman said, "he _is_ hot."

"So what do I do, Jane? This has never happened to me; I'm worried. I mean, my break up with Bryan was long enough ago that I'm not…"

"Darcy…"

"...on a desperate rebound. There isn't a history of mental instability in my family…"

"_Darcy…_"

"...Maybe there was something in the air on the plane that made me weak, and…"

"DARCY!"

Finally, Jane managed to get her friend's attention. "You're not mentally unstable just because you've fallen for someone in three days instead of three weeks." She took a deep breath and then a sip of her coffee. "You want my advice? Trust your gut and leave your brain behind. You always talk about trusting your gut, but you have a bad habit of second-guessing it when it doesn't follow what you think is a logical path. Consider the possible outcomes: best case scenario, you've met the love of your life and forty years from now you'll be telling your grandkids the romantic story of how you guys met; worst case scenario, you'll have had a fling in France with a hot British guy, you'll come home alone and cry and we'll have some ice cream and trash talk him, and then you'll go on with your life."

"See?" Darcy said in a small voice, loving Jane more than ever. "This is why I'm the luckiest person in the world to have you as my best friend." She yawned-it really was late, and it would be harder than ever to wake up and plough through another of Collette's jam-packed schedules.

"Go to bed," Jane told her tenderly. "You have a man to keep warm," she added, a mischievous twinkle in her eye.

Darcy nodded. "Ha, ha. I really need to get some sleep-we can hold off on that til morning."

The two women said their goodbyes and Darcy stood up, her heart lighter and her mind clearer. She bunched the white comforter up into a ball, trying her best to prevent it from dragging on the concrete floor of the patio and quietly slipped back into the room.

Loki was sound asleep on his side, snoring softly. She draped the duvet back over the bed and slipped under the covers, pressing herself against his back and wrapping her arm around him. Although he didn't wake up, his hand reached up to hold hers firm against his chest.

_Yeah_, she thought as her consciousness began to fade, _I could get used to this_.

* * *

What felt like no more than five minutes after she closed her eyes, Darcy felt someone gently shaking her.

"Darcy, darling, it's time to wake up."

She opened her eyes, rubbing at them groggily, and managed to sit up. "What time is it?" she mumbled.

The young man looked at his watch. "It's half past seven." At her rising panic-_What?! I only have forty five minutes to shower, get dressed, put my makeup on, eat..._-he put his hands up palms out, to appease her. "I've brought you breakfast," he announced quickly, reaching around to show her a covered platter. He lifted the lid off and presented her with a plate of bacon, fruit, cheese and a croissant.

Darcy accepted the offering, placing the tray on her lap and digging in. "Thanks. I didn't think they had room service here," she said around a mouthful of croissant. They really did have the best pastries ever in France, bar none.

"They don't," he replied, sitting back down on the edge of the bed. He stole a grape off her plate, popped it in his mouth, and winked at her. "I told the attendant in the breakfast room you weren't feeling well, and asked if I could bring you some food. She was happy to oblige."

"You didn't happen to get me a coffee, too, did you?" The food was going a long way to get her feeling more human, but a coffee would make a world of difference.

Loki jumped as if he'd just remembered something. "Ah, yes," he said, getting up and walking to the desk. He brought over a steaming mug and handed it to her. "Not coffee, but a cup of Earl Grey you can stand on."

She took a tentative sip and made a face. "Holy shit, this is strong; did you just leave the leaves in it?"

"It's my cure for hangovers and late nights. And don't be such a baby; a few more sips and you'll be more awake than if you'd had a full night's sleep."

Doubtful, Darcy took another sip, making another face. If nothing else, the horrible taste would wake her up.

Of course, so would a shower. And a shower would be much more pleasant.

She took another sip of the 'please stand on me' tea, placed the mug on the nightstand and swung her feet over the side of the bed. "I'm going to take a shower; that, along with your caffeine concentrate, should make sure I wake up ."

According to the clock on the TV, it was twenty to eight-she had just over half an hour still to finish getting ready. _Not bad, Darce; you've managed on less time before._

Darcy walked to the bathroom, leaving a trail of clothes in her wake. Naturally, Loki followed. She hopped into the tub and turned the water on. Speaking loudly enough for the young man to hear, she asked: "Were Anika or Gustave in the cafeteria when you went down for breakfast?"

"No. Neither of them were."

"Do you think we should call them? You know, make sure they haven't slept in?"

"I really don't think that's necess…" Loki pulled away from the counter and left the room mid-sentence, leaving Darcy hanging.

"What is it?" she called out, rinsing the conditioner out of her hair. "Loki?!"

"You're going to want to rush things a bit more," he said as he walked back into the bathroom two minutes later. "Anika just called your cell. I answered it; she says she wants you to take the bus with her."

Darcy sighed. "Ok, I guess I'm clean enough." She finished rinsing off and turned the water off. Her arm shot out from behind the curtain, patting blindly for the towel she'd put aside. When she couldn't find it she popped her head out and saw that Loki was holding it up for her, the corners of his lips turned up into a not-so-innocent smile.

"What?" he countered, eyes wide with false innocence. "I'm just trying to help."

"Uh-huh. I know what the kind of 'help' you're thinking about leads to, mister." Despite her tone, she allowed him to wrap her in the towel and kiss her cheek.

"See?" he said. "A perfect gentleman."

While she flipped through the clothes she had hanging in her closet, the young woman began to muse out loud. "I wonder why Anika wants me to take the bus with her. Do you think she and Gustave had a fight?"

"She didn't sound upset," he replied. "Although I'll never claim to understand the intricate ways in which a woman's mind works."

Darcy turned around, clothes in hand, and gently patted him on the shoulder. "You're not meant to, Loki." As she began to get dressed, she pressed on. "I once read in a book something about how women follow conversations on five levels at once: the one that's being spoken out loud, the one that's being avoided, the tone that's being used, body language..." She finished buttoning her blouse and frowned. "I can't remember what the fifth one was. Anyway, and while we have all this stuff going on, guys are simply having the one conversation that's being spoken out loud."

Loki stared at her, one eyebrow raised. Deadpan, he replied "that explains so much."

"Yes, yes it does." Darcy gave him a peck on the cheek as she passed him on her way to the bathroom. It didn't surprise her when he followed her in and sat down, watching her apply her makeup. Her mind on the clock, she only applied a bit of mascara and lip gloss. Taking the bus meant she had to adhere to a much stricter schedule than when she went with Loki. As much as she was looking forward to having some serious gossip time with Ani, she'd really miss her personal chauffeured ride to the conference. "Is Gustave taking my place in the car, then?"

"I suppose he will. We haven't discussed it, but if Anika is expecting you to join her Gustave might as well ride with me." He checked his watch and stood up. "Speaking of which, you have 5 minutes before the bus leaves. You'd best be on your way if you don't want to disappoint Anika."

"Yikes!" Darcy exclaimed, tossing her makeup willy-nilly in her toiletries bag and rushing out. She grabbed her bags, which were still where she'd left them the night before, and pretended to wait impatiently for Loki. "Chop chop," she said, tapping her foot, "I have a bus to catch, don't you know."

Her cheekiness earned her a smack on the rear end as Loki walked through the door she held open. "Come on, love. Let's get you to your coach."

* * *

Anika and Gustave were among the few stragglers left in the lobby. "Come on, Darcy, before we miss the bus!" the blonde called out when they walked out of the elevator.

"Ok, ok, geez…" Darcy cast Loki a helpless glance, which garnered her a chuckle, before setting off at a jogging pace behind the taller woman. She waved at Gustave on her way by, glad she'd opted for wearing a pair of comfortable flats.

The two women boarded the bus mere moments before it set off, and found themselves two empty seats side by side. "So," Darcy began, "why did you want me to ride with you to the conference?" Her voice lowered to a whisper. "Is everything ok between you and Gustave?"

"Of course it is," Anika confirmed, keeping her voice as low as Darcy's. "I just thought we'd both benefit from some girl time after last night." With a twinkle in her eye, she leaned in even closer. "Did you and Loki make it to your room before the fireworks started?"

Sitting on a bus early in the morning, swapping sex stories, Darcy felt like she was in her senior year of high school. As much as Jane kept her well-grounded, Anika was going to be the friend who kept things on the fun side of crazy. With an equally mischievous air, the young American smiled. "Yeah, we did, but that was mostly because of the rain-we didn't have a choice. But once we were in the room..." She sighed wistfully, sinking back into the coach seat. "...it was magical. Loki and his magic fingers, and his magic tongue..."

"And his magic wand," Anika interjected.

Both women burst out laughing, Darcy smacking her friend on the arm. "Ani, you're horrible." When their giggles subsided, the American decided it was time to turn the tables. "So what about you and Gustave? What did you kids get up to after we left?"

"We only stayed at the concert for another half hour. By then the rain had stopped so we went for a walk to clear our heads and talk a bit." She paused, looking out the window for a few moments, her silliness dissipating. "I told him about Jason-my husband," she clarified, turning back to face Darcy. "And he told me about Mariane, his ex-wife."

"Yeah, Loki told me about her," Darcy admitted, her lips pressed together in disapproval. "I'm thinking it's not as easy anymore for him to trust someone in a relationship."

"No," the other woman agreed, "but you can't really blame him after what happened." She took a deep breath, and then her smile returned. "So we walked along the water, talking about us-it felt good to talk about the future instead of dwelling on the past. We were close to one of those beach restaurants when the rain started up again. It was closed, but there was a large overhang where they'd stored some of their beach chairs, so we ran under there." Her voice dropped so low that Darcy had to lean in almost intimately close to hear her. "And, well, it was dark, and we were alone, and one thing led to another..."

"Wait," Darcy interjected, half shocked half amused, "you guys had sex on a restaurant beach chair?!"

"Not the first time," Anika's lips curled into a shy smile. "We didn't make it to a chair-he took me against the wall. After that came the chair..."

Darcy gasped out loud, slapping her hand against her mouth to keep quiet. "Holy shit, you're making _me_ feel tame," she whispered.

"I've never done anything like that, Darcy. With Jason it was always sweet; he was too conservative to do anything risky like that. Gustave, on the other hand... he's so fiery. Although, he's guarded, he still wears his heart on his sleeve-we're both entering this nervously, because of the distance, and also because of his kids. There's a lot to consider if we want to give this a try."

"Loki and I haven't really talked about that, yet. Although, we both live in New York so that's one hurdle jumped, I guess." She sighed. "I just wish we could 'out' ourselves, that we could hold hands or at least stand closer to each other without wondering how it's going to be perceived."

"Does it really matter? It's not like he's your boss or like you even work in the same department."

Darcy was going to tell Anika about Collette's gentle warning, but the bus pulled into the parking lot and everyone began rustling around, gathering their bags. They lined up and exited the bus, both lost in the tumult of thoughts brought on by their conversation.

* * *

A light breakfast had been set up in the main foyer of the hall with an assortment of fruit, yogourts, pastries and drinks.

The two women each grabbed a plate of fruit and a warm drink and found a table in the conference hall. When everyone had settled down, Collette announced that the day would be spent with the attendees split by function: Business Development, Innovations, Sales, Systems Development, and Technical Support.

For the first time since the conference began, Anika and Darcy found themselves in the same group-Systems Development-which was led by Ibrahim. The next few hours were spent learning about the newest systems upgrades which were scheduled to be rolled out in the Fall. Despite it being an engaging, hands-on session, it was a significantly intense session which reminded Darcy of school.

"Ugh," she groaned as they broke for lunch. "My brain has officially turned to mush."

Anika followed her out of the room into the hall where the food was laid out. "I'm just concerned about how we're going to migrate from one system to another with projects on the go. It's going to be messy."

"I don't even want to think about that. I'm going to be an ostrich and just stick my head in the ground." She got in line and peeked around at what had been served for lunch. "Sandwiches again?! We're in _France_, for crying out loud. Why can't they serve us real food?"

Carmen, who was standing in front of her, turned around. "I believe they have salads today, too. Hopefully there is some left for us-I am also tired of sandwiches," she added with a grimace.

Darcy's mood lightened somewhat. "Salads are not sandwiches, ergo they're a good thing," she joked, getting a chuckle out of those around her.

When they reached the table they were relieved to see that there was a variety of salads still available. Darcy loaded her plate with a little bit of each salad (the seafood salad looked particularly appetising), ensuring she had enough food to avoid needing a sandwich. She broke a piece off one of the baguettes and went off in search of a table, Anika not far behind her.

Loki and Gustave had saved them a spot at a bench flanked by hibiscus trees in full bloom. Darcy paused to look at the large fuchsia blossoms. "These are so beautiful; I really wish I could grow these in New York." She sat down beside Loki, resisting the urge to lean back against his chest and take a nap. Instead she finally took a bite of her seafood salad, which was every bit as delicious as it had looked and smelled.

"So," she said through a mouthful of salad, "what did you boys get up to in your sessions?"

Gustave moved aside to make room for Anika, who had no compunctions about clearly advertising her relationship with him. She sidled up next to him and opened her sandwich, pulling out the tomatoes with the tips of her fingers.

The Frenchman gave her a quick peck on the cheek and turned to Darcy. "My team spent the morning reviewing which type of customer will be most responsive to the new system-the new developments will allow us to reach out to new markets, such as Advertising. This afternoon we will be paired with Sales because our roles are so closely linked-we will try to come up with strategy templates that will be used globally."

"Wow," Darcy replied. "Advertising, huh? I wish I could sit in on that meeting-I'm so used to working with the architects and the engineers, I can't imagine what it's like to work with the world of advertising."

"A bit like herding cats, I imagine," Loki interjected, unimpressed. "Architects and engineers are logical whereas advertisers are ideas people."

"I can see that advertisers might push us to explore avenues we wouldn't have considered, though," Anika countered. "Architects are creative, but often within boundaries, but with advertisers the sky's the limit. I think our biggest challenge is going to be reining in Sales-we already have issues with them promising the impossible."

The other three grumbled in agreement and focused on finishing their lunches. When they were done, Anika suggested they go for a walk as they had been given the gift of a longer lunch. They all headed for the pathways surrounding the conference centre, with Anika and Gustave in the front and Darcy and Loki just behind. They strolled along in comfortable silence interrupted only by the occasional comment about the local flora or fauna.

Darcy noticed Gustave pat the breast pocket of his shirt, and Anika reach up to take his hand in hers. The third time it happened, she glanced at Loki, who smirked knowingly. He slowed down the pace until there was a bit of distance between the two couples, then he leaned over and whispered: "He must have it bad for her; looks like he's quit smoking-for now at least."

"_Oh_," she replied, the gesture now making sense. "That _is_ serious," she agreed.

They circled around the building, arriving back in the hall at the same time as dessert was being laid out on the table. They each grabbed a few petits fours and headed back into the hall, ready to continue their work.

The College-like pace of the afternoon session proved to be a challenge for Darcy, whose brain was no longer used to such intense cognitive exercises. Plainly put, her head hurt.

At the end of the day, Anika had played the role of Mom and had provided her with a few Tylenol to help stem the headache which had taken residence behind the younger woman's eyes. After that, Darcy had crawled into Loki's car, had reclined the seat, and had closed her eyes.

Worried, Loki had asked her if he could do anything to help.

"You wouldn't happen to have a night mask on you, would you?" she asked, serious.

"I'm afraid not," he replied. "I wish I'd brought my suit jacket today-you could have draped it over your eyes. As it is, I'll try my best to avoid the worst of the bumps on the way back to the hotel."

Surprisingly, Darcy managed to nod off during the short ride back to town. She woke up just as Loki was pulling into a parking spot and was relieved to feel the worst of her headache had subsided.

"How are you?" Loki asked, his voice low.

"Better, thanks. You must have done quite a job of avoiding those bumps for me to sleep like that," she said, climbing out of the car.

He wrapped his arm around her and she leaned into his side as they made their way back to the hotel. "I'm actually glad dinner isn't until later; it's going to give me a chance to decompress," Darcy said. "I think this day calls for some sunbathing."

"Mmm…" Loki agreed, "I certainly won't argue with that." He leaned in and kissed her soundly on the lips.

At that moment, Jim Nelson walked out of the lobby doors and the three of them came face to face. There was an awkward moment where neither party said anything-Darcy blushed, Jim's eyebrows were under his hairline and Loki was stock still.

"Jim," Loki greeted, finally breaking the silence.

The other man quickly shook out of his surprise. "Loki, Darcy," he nodded back. "Have a nice, um, evening," he added, before walking away still befuddled.

"Well, I guess we've been outed," Darcy commented, watching Jim head to his car. She followed Loki back into the lobby and over to the elevator. "Although that was rather anticlimactic. I sort of expected his head to blow up, or for him to yell at us or something."

They stepped into the elevator, which began its slow ascent. "His reaction was pretty much what was to be expected, Darcy. It would have been highly unprofessional for him to verbally assault us out in a hotel parking lot. I'm more afraid of what he might try behind the scenes; if he really wanted to, he could accuse me of using my rank to influence you, or worse, to pressure you into a sexual relationship."

"What?!" Darcy's headache was forgotten. "But we both know that's not true!" She balled her hands into fists, her arms straight beside her.

Loki smiled at her and placed his hands on her shoulders. "Don't worry," he insisted. "I don't see him taking it to that extent. Most likely he's going to pull one of us aside and ask us a few pointed questions, not unlike what Collette did. Anyway," he added, leaning in closer, "you're the one who kept making the first moves."

Darcy bridged the gap between them and pressed her lips to his. "Sure, blame me. It's not my fault you're tall, dark and handsome."

"Don't forget 'and horny'-that's partly to blame, too."

"Partly, huh?" Darcy said as she got off the elevator.

Loki followed her down the hall to her room. "Would I sound more credible if I upgraded that to 'mostly'?"

"Yup. But it would apply to both of us, though. You can't shoulder all the blame." The young woman unlocked the door and entered the small room, dropping her bags unceremoniously by the entrance. "Home sweet home," she announced, grabbing her bikini and heading for the bathroom. "I have an appointment with the sun that I have to keep."

"Not going to give me a show?" Loki asked as he toed off his shoes.

"Sorry, I actually want to make it out to the balcony. I know full well what happens if I try to change out here close to you, and none of it involves tanning or relaxing." She gave Loki a kiss on the cheek as she walked by him, laughing at the hangdog face he made.

"It's just as well," he sighed dramatically. "I have a few dozen emails to pore through-I might as well get those out of the way." He frowned as his phone buzzed; he looked at it and turned to Darcy. "It's Gustave and Anika-they want to know if we want to meet up for dinner tonight."

"Sure-that'd be great. Tell them we'll meet them in the lobby at seven." Darcy headed out to the patio, looking forward to some sun, some quiet and-most importantly-some relaxation.

* * *

**A/N: Hmm... will Darcy ****_really_**** relax? Or will she cave in to temptation? We'll find out next week!**

**I should mention that the "women are having five conversations at once" blurb is borrowed from Jim Butcher's Harry Dresden novel, Cold Days. Those books are a riot-pick them up if you have a chance!**

**As always, please read & review. I'm seeing lots of people favouriting and following-don't be shy, you can say 'hi'!**


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